title: Quality of life, drinking to cope, alcohol consumption and smoking in successfully treated HNSCC patients.
abstract: CONCLUSIONS
  The level of coping by alcohol consumption is broadly associated with level of general quality of life (QoL) in patients with successfully treated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to investigate the association between self-reported level of general coping, drinking to cope (DTC), reported alcohol and tobacco use as well as QoL in successfully treated HNSCC patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  We employed a cross-sectional design. Sample I included all patients <80 years old who had been diagnosed with HNSCC in Western Norway in the period from 1992 to 1997, and who were disease-free in the year 2000. The patients were interviewed at a routine follow-up visit. Sample II included all Norwegian laryngectomized patients. General coping and DTC were assessed by the COPE questionnaire and the QoL was assessed by the EORTC-QLQ (C30/H&N35) questionnaire. Reported level of alcohol consumption was associated with global QoL (r = -0.22) and with DTC (r = 0.31). Reported smoking level was associated with DTC (r = 0.26) and inversely with C30 functional/symptom sum QoL scores (r = -0.31/0.27). Level of DTC was associated with C30 global (r = -0.30) and C30 functional/symptom sum QoL scores (r = -0.31/0.27) and this association was still present after adjustment for gender, age, levels of neuroticism and avoidance coping.
authors.affiliation: Section of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway. anne.aarstad@kir.uib.no
authors.forename: Anne Kari Hersvik
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Aarstad
authors.forename: Hans J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Aarstad
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Olofsson
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000502:physiology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007825:Laryngectomy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome