Health-related Quality of Life in Women with Cervical Cancer

Abstract

Objective To analyze the factors associated with health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in women with cervical cancer (CC) in a single center in Rio de Janeiro, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Methods A cross-sectional study in women with a diagnosis of CC followed-up in the gynecology outpatient clinic of the Hospital do Câncer II (HCII, in the Portuguese acronym) of the Instituto Nacional de Câncer (INCA, in the Portuguese acronym). The data were collected from March to August 2015. Women with palliative care, communication/cognition difficulty, undergoing simultaneous treatment for other types of cancer, or undergoing chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy were excluded. For the evaluation of the HRQoL, a specific questionnaire for women with CC was used (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy – Cervix Cancer [FACT-Cx]). The total score of the questionnaire ranges from 0 to 168, with higher scores indicating a better HRQoL. Results A total of 115 women were included in the present study, with a mean age of 52.64 years old (standard deviation [SD] = 12.13). The domains of emotional (16.61; SD = 4.55) and functional well-being (17.63; SD = 6.15) were those which presented the worst scores. The factors that had an association with better HRQoL in women with CC were having a current occupation, a longer time since the treatment and diagnosis, and women who had undergone hysterectomy. Conclusion Considering the domains of HRQoL of the women treated for cervical cancer, a better score was observed in the domains of physical and social/family well-being. For most domains, better scores were found between those with a current occupation, with a longer time after the diagnosis and treatment, and among those who had undergone a hysterectomy.

The Life Quality and Sexual Function of Women Underwent Radical Hysterectomy

“…SF also refers to an important factor determining the QL of the patients (Thapa et al, 2018). There is growing evidence that a better quality of life (QL) and sexual functions (SF) after surgical treatment are higher compared to chemo-radiation grpup (Dos Santos et al, 2019;Frumovitz et al, 2005).…”

Quality of life of cervical cancer patients

“…Efforts should be made to prevent and treat these long-term effects of locally advanced cervical cancer treatment, which could improve patients' quality of life. Santos et al (2019) indicated that health-related quality of life in women with cervical cancer using domains of HRQoL of the women treated for cervical cancer, showed a better score observed in the areas of physical and social/ family well-being. Most domains show better scores in those with a current occupation, the duration after the diagnosis and treatment, and among those who had undergone a hysterectomy.…”

Avaliação da adesão ao autocuidado em mulheres submetidas à braquiterapia ginecológica

“…Os dados foram analisados por meio de estatística descritiva com medidas de A incidência de CC é mais frequente em mulheres com condições socioeconômicas menos favoráveis, com menor nível de escolaridade e classe social mais pobre (9)(10) . O baixo nível socioeconômico e educacional das participantes do estudo corrobora o que é evidenciado na literatura acerca do perfil sociodemográfico das pacientes com CC (11)(12) .…”

“…Além dos efeitos cutâneos, a radiação lesiona o epitélio vaginal, causando atrofia, perda da elasticidade, estenose e diminuição da lubrificação (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14) . Ademais, as pacientes podem apresentar corrimento vaginal, sangramento, dispareunia, ou seja, fatores que contribuem para diminuição da satisfação e do desejo das mulheres em manter relações sexuais, aumentando a chance de possível disfunção sexual após o tratamento (7) .…”