Quality of Life During Chemotherapy in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients

Abstract

To evaluate the usefulness of chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer, objective response, length of remission and survival have been considered the main yardsticks. Subjective improvement and gain in Karnofsky performance status have attracted very little attention. Thirty-one patients with stages III and IV underwent combination chemotherapy with high-dose cisplatin, and were assessed with categorical scales and 100 mm visual analogue scales used by patients themselves to report on several symptoms of their illness. After chemotherapy 17 of 19 patients (89%) gained weight; 20 presented anorexia, 10 of those (50%) improved; 15 had pain, 7 of those (47%) were alleviated; cough was reported in 22, in 10 (45%) it was ameliorated; hemoptysis disappeared in 10 of 11 patients (91%); of the 9 patients who had dyspnea, 7 improved (78%); and astenia was attenuated in 8 of 16 patients (50%). Quality of life was reported improved in 75% of those patients who had considered themselves seriously affected prior to the treatment. When compared with Karnofsky performance status, no relationship was found (r = 0.31). It is concluded that, apart from the objective response achieved, a significant proportion of patients did benefit from treatment as demonstrated by a marked relief of symptoms.

Avaliação da qualidade de vida em pacientes com câncer de pulmão através da aplicação do questionário Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short-Form Health Survey

“…The impact of cancer on emotional well-being showed that the diagnosis and treatment can be accompanied by anxiety and depression. (24,25) Curiously, in the logistic regression analysis of our study, the scores of patients in the more advanced stages of lung cancer in the emotional well-being domain were slightly higher than those of other patients, possibly indicating better acceptance of the diagnosis of cancer or the comforting effect of the adjuvant care offered to patients in the more advanced stages of the disease.…”

Patients' and doctors' perception of long-term morbidity in patients with testicular cancer clinical stage I

“…During recent years, quality of life (QL) has increasingly become the focus of interest in clinical cancer trials [3,5,11,14,16,19,20,22,24,31]. The methodology of QL evaluation is, however, an ongoing issue of debate [1, 10,28,29].…”

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“…Moreover, now it has been proved in various studies despite improvement in survival chemotherapy also have impact over quality of life; it reduces the symptoms like cough, hemoptyis, pain and dysponea in approximately 70% of patients and improvement in performance status and weight gain 15,16,17,18 .…”