Life quality of women with breast cancer after mastectomy or breast conserving therapy treated with adjuvant chemotherapy

Abstract

I. Life quality of women with breast cancer after mastectomy or breast conserving therapy treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. Ann Agric Environ Med. 2015; 22(4): 724-730. doi: 10.5604/12321966.1185784 Abstract Introduction. Breast cancer is the most frequent malignant neoplasm in women. The evaluation of the quality of life has become a treatment parameter as important as survival. Objective. The aim of the study was evaluation of the quality of life among women treated for breast cancer who underwent surgical procedures using two alternative methods: mastectomy or breast conserving therapy (BCT). Materials and method. 85 patients treated with BCT and 94 patients who underwent mastectomy were evaluated. Standard questionnaires for the evaluation of the quality of life of cancer patients were used -QLQ-C30 (Quality of life questionnaire -core 30) with QLQ-BR23 (Breast Cancer Module). The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was also applied. Results. Social and demographic factors (age, education, marital status) influenced the evaluation of the life quality among both groups. Obtained data was also dependent on the type of surgical procedure and chemical treatment. The level of anxiety and depression also influenced the general quality of life and was higher in women who underwent mastectomy. Conclusions. Quality of life plays an important role in the treatment process. Women after BCT declared a higher quality of life compared to patients after mastectomy. The process of making the decision concerning the planned surgical procedure should take into consideration the influence of the intervention on the quality of patients' future life.

Health‐related quality of life associated with different cancer treatments in Chinese breast cancer survivors in Taiwan

“…Moreover, the cancer‐related characteristics of the target patients in previous QoL studies varied (e.g., breast cancer stage, cancer duration, pre‐ or post‐menopause), which makes it difficult to compare the QoL results across studies. This highlights the importance of adjusting for patient's characteristics (e.g., breast cancer‐related characteristics, demographics) when evaluating the association between treatment and QoL, because patients' demographics (e.g., education; Chen, Liu, Wang, Liu, & Chen, ; Kaminska et al, ) and cancer‐related characteristics (e.g., cancer stage; Chen et al, ; Huang et al, ) may influence QoL. We found that the QoL of breast cancer patients varied with cancer stage and educational level (i.e., the results of simple linear regression analyses in Table ), although these trends were insignificant in subsequent adjusted analyses (i.e., the results of multiple linear regression analyses in Table ).…”

“…The QoL of patients with breast cancer, worsened by the cancer it- Hwang et al, 2013;Tiezzi et al, 2017, radiotherapy only;Rahn et al, 1998;Xiao et al, 2016, mastectomy only;Kaminska et al, 2015;Szutowicz-Wydra et al, 2016), whereas this study comprehensively evaluated the QoL across different cancer treatments. We found that the use of chemotherapy had the most significant association with the QoL of breast cancer survivors, with adjustment for patient's characteristics and other breast cancer treatments; no significant association was not found for other types of breast cancer treatment.…”

“…Understanding the impact of breast cancer treatment on the QoL of patients is not only important for patients and their health care providers but also critical for policymakers to evaluate the cost‐effectiveness of cancer treatments. Most previous studies focused on the QoL associated with a specific breast cancer treatment of interest (i.e., tamoxifen only; Boehm et al, ; Kilickap et al, ; van Nes et al, , AIs only; Kilickap et al, ; Laroche et al, ; van Nes et al, , chemotherapy only; Bayram et al, ; Browall et al, ; Galalae et al, ; Ganz et al, ; Hwang et al, ; Tiezzi et al, , radiotherapy only; Rahn et al, ; Xiao et al, , mastectomy only; Kaminska et al, ; Szutowicz‐Wydra et al, ), whereas this study comprehensively evaluated the QoL across different cancer treatments. We found that the use of chemotherapy had the most significant association with the QoL of breast cancer survivors, with adjustment for patient's characteristics and other breast cancer treatments; no significant association was not found for other types of breast cancer treatment.…”

Present and changing trends in surgical modalities and neoadjuvant chemotherapy administration for female breast cancer in Beijing, China: A 10‐year (2006–2015) retrospective hospitalization summary report‐based study

“…Furthermore, compared with mastectomy, breast‐conserving surgery (BCS) causes less physical disfigurement and psychological trauma. The quality of life for patients after BCT continues to be debated . The differences in stigma and psychological condition between surgery modalities is controversial…”

“…The quality of life for patients after BCT continues to be debated. [17][18][19] The differences in stigma and psychological condition between surgery modalities is controversial. 20 Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) is defined as the application of systematic therapy prior to breast surgery.…”