title: Health-Related Quality of Life among Breast Cancer Patients and Influencing Factors in Morocco
abstract: Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in most countries of the world. It is ranked
  first in females in Morocco (accounting for 33.4% of the total cancer burden) and more than 60% of cases are diagnosed
  at stage III or IV. During the last decade, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has become an important aspect of breast
  cancer treatment. The objective of this study was to describe self-reported HRQOL in patients with breast cancer and
  to investigate its associations with sociodemographic and clinical variables. Methods: A prospective study was carried
  out in the main oncology centers in Morocco. Quality of life was measured using the Moroccan Arabic versions of the
  European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C 30 (EORTC QLQ C30)
  and the Breast Cancer-Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-BR23). Statistical analyses were performed
  using descriptive statistics and multivariate analyses. Results: A total of 1463 subjects were included in the study, with
  a mean age of 55.6 (SD. 11.2) years, 70% being married. The majority had stage II (45.9%) and a few cases stage IV
  (12.9%) lesions. The participants’ global health mean score was 68.5 and in “functional scales”, social functioning
  scored the highest (Mean 86.2 (SD=22.7)). The most distressing symptom on the symptom scale was financial difficulties
  (Mean 63.2 (SD=38.2)). Using the disease specific tool, it was found that future perspective scored the lowest (Mean
  40.5 (SD=37.3)). On the symptom scale, arm symptoms scored the highest (Mean 23.6 (SD=21.6)). Significant mean
  differences were noted for many functional and symptom scales. Conclusion: Our results emphasized that the general
  HRQOL for our study population is lower than for corresponding populations in other countries. This study provided
  baseline information on the quality of life for a large sample of Moroccan women diagnosed with breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of epidemiology and public health, Faculty of Medicine, University Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah, Fez, Morocco. Email: elfakirsamira@yahoo.fr
authors.forename: Samira
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: El Fakir
authors.forename: Karima
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: El Rhazi
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zidouh
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bennani
authors.forename: Abdelatif
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Benider
authors.forename: Hassan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Errihani
authors.forename: Nawfel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mellass
authors.forename: Rachid
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bekkali
authors.forename: Nejjari
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nejjari
keywords: Breast cancer; Morocco; quality of life; EORTC QLQ C 30; EORTC BR 23