Abstract
Cancer related fatigue (CRF) is a common and debilitating symptom that can influence quality of life (QoL) in cancer patients. The increase in survival times stresses for a better understanding of how CRF affects patients' QoL. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study with 148 randomly recruited prostate cancer patients aiming to explore CRF and its impact on QoL. Assessments included the Cancer Fatigue Scale, EORTC QLQ-C30, and EORTC QLQ-PR25. Additionally, 15 in-depth structured interviews were performed. Quantitative data were analyzed with simple and multiple regression analysis and independent samples t-test. Qualitative data were analyzed with the use of thematic content analysis. The 66.9% of the patients experienced CRF with higher levels being recorded for the affective subscale. Statistically significant differences were found between the patients reporting CRF and lower levels of QoL (mean = 49.1) and those that did not report fatigue and had higher levels of QoL (mean = 72.1). The interviews emphasized CRF's profound impact on the patients' lives that was reflected on the following themes: “dependency on others,” “loss of power over decision making,” and “daily living disruption.” Cancer related fatigue is a significant problem for patients with advanced prostate cancer and one that affects their QoL in various ways.
Highlights
Prostate cancer is the most frequent malignancy among men, as it usually affects men over the age of fifty [1]
Cancer related fatigue (CRF) can be defined as a persistent, subjective sense of tiredness related to cancer or cancer treatment that interferes with usual functioning [6]
Participants were randomly selected from the Out-Patients Oncology Clinics of two public hospitals in Cyprus. Eligible participants were those with an advanced prostate cancer diagnosis at least 6 months before the data collection; they received hormonal therapy with no response; they were on chemotherapy treatment with docetaxel as primary or combination chemotherapy, were able to speak and understand Greek, and had a score of >50 on the Karnofsky Performance Scale Index and a mean of >50 on the Attentional Function Index (AFI)
Summary
Prostate cancer is the most frequent malignancy among men, as it usually affects men over the age of fifty [1]. Prostate cancer itself and its treatment have been associated with side effects such as fatigue, insomnia, impaired sexual functioning, bowel problems, and urinary dysfunction that can have a negative influence on healthrelated quality of life [4]. Fatigue occurs both as a consequence of the cancer itself and as an adverse effect of cancer treatment [5]. Cancer related fatigue (CRF) can be defined as a persistent, subjective sense of tiredness related to cancer or cancer treatment that interferes with usual functioning [6]
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