Fatigue in breast cancer survivors two to five years post diagnosis: a HEAL Study report.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to estimate prevalence of fatigue, identify correlates of fatigue and evaluate the relationship between fatigue and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in a large cohort of disease-free breast cancer survivors.


METHODS
Participants are enrolled in the HEAL Study, a multi-center prospective study of women diagnosed with in-situ to Stage IIIA breast cancer. HEAL participants (n = 1183) completed a baseline and a 24-month follow-up interview. Women in this report (n = 800) also completed a quality of life questionnaire that included the Piper Fatigue Scale and the RAND SF-36 two to five years after diagnosis. Multivariate regression methods were used to identify significant factors associated with fatigue. SF-36 scores for fatigued survivors were compared to non-fatigued survivor scores and population norms.


RESULTS
Forty-one percent of the breast cancer survivors were fatigued. Significant correlates of fatigue included pain, cognitive problems, physical inactivity, weight gain/personal appearance and antidepressant use. Fatigue was associated with poorer HRQOL, most notably in areas of role and social functioning.


CONCLUSIONS
This study provides further support for the conclusion that a significant proportion of breast cancer survivors experience fatigue that compromises HRQOL two to five years post-diagnosis.
Meeske
Kathleen
K
Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, 1444 Eastlake Avenue, Room 4449, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
Smith
Ashley Wilder
AW
Alfano
Catherine M
CM
McGregor
Bonnie A
BA
McTiernan
Anne
A
Baumgartner
Kathy B
KB
Malone
Kathleen E
KE
Reeve
Bryce B
BB
Ballard-Barbash
Rachel
R
Bernstein
Leslie
L
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005221:Fatigue / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D015141:Los Angeles; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009516:New Mexico; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life; D018426:SEER Program; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014861:Washington