School of Public Health, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Queensland, Australia.
Lymphology. 2010 Dec;43(4):178-87.
This investigation describes the prevalence of upper-body symptoms in a population-based sample of women with breast cancer (BC) and examines their relationships with upper-body function (UBF) and lymphedema, as two clinically important sequelae. Australian women (n=287) with unilateral BC were assessed at three-monthly intervals, from six to 18 months post-surgery (PS). Participants reported the presence and intensity of upper-body symptoms on the treated side. Objective and self-reported UBF and lymphedema (bioimpedance spectroscopy) were also assessed. Approximately 50% of women reported at least one moderate-to-extreme symptom at 6- and at 18-months PS. There was a significant relationship between symptoms and function (p < 0.01), whereby perceived and objective function declined with increasing number of symptoms present. Those with lymphedema were more likely to report multiple symptoms, and presence of symptoms at baseline was associated with an increased risk of lymphedema (ORs > 1.3, p = 0.02), although presence of symptoms explained only 5.5% of the variation in the odds for lymphedema. Upper-body symptoms are common and persistent following breast cancer and are associated with clinical ramifications, including reduced UBF and increased risk of developing lymphedema. However, using the presence of symptoms as a diagnostic indicator or prognosticator of lymphedema has its limitations.
本研究调查了乳腺癌（BC）女性患者中常见的上半身症状，并探讨了这些症状与上半身功能（UBF）和淋巴水肿的关系，这两种情况都是临床上重要的后遗症。在手术后 6 至 18 个月期间，每隔三个月评估一次来自澳大利亚的单侧 BC 女性（n=287）。参与者报告了治疗侧的上半身症状的存在和强度。还评估了客观和自我报告的 UBF 和淋巴水肿（生物阻抗光谱）。大约 50%的女性在 6 个月和 18 个月 PS 时报告至少有一种中度至重度症状。症状与功能之间存在显著关系（p < 0.01），即感知功能和客观功能随着症状数量的增加而下降。患有淋巴水肿的患者更有可能报告多种症状，并且症状的存在与淋巴水肿的风险增加相关（ORs > 1.3，p = 0.02），尽管症状的存在仅解释了淋巴水肿的可能性变化的 5.5%。乳腺癌治疗后，上半身症状很常见且持续存在，并与临床后果相关，包括 UBF 下降和淋巴水肿风险增加。然而，使用症状的存在作为淋巴水肿的诊断指标或预后因素存在局限性。
