Nutritional Screening and Assessment, and Quality of Life in Children with Cancer: A Cross-Sectional Study in Mainland China.

PURPOSE

To apply Screening Tool for Risk on Nutritional status and Growth (STRONGkids) and the subjective global nutritional assessment (SGNA) for evaluating nutritional status, to identify the disease-related and demographic-related factors of malnutrition, and to examine the relationship between nutritional status and quality of life (QOL) in children with cancer during chemotherapy in mainland China.

DESIGN AND METHODS

Children, ages 2-18, with a leukemia, lymphoma, or solid tumor diagnosis were recruited from a top cancer center in Guangzhou, China. Socio-demographic information, clinical information were collected, while nutritional status using SGNA, malnutrition risk using STRONGkids, and QOL of these children were measured. Descriptive analyses, Chi-tests, ANOVA and logistic regression analysis were used to analyze data.

RESULTS

Among included participants, 55.8% of them were malnourished, and 74.2% of them had moderate to high risk of malnutrition. The overall QOL and subscales were associated with nutritional status. In the logistic-regression model, high malnutrition risk, patients' mother having primary school education or less, worse physical functioning quality of life, and lower BMI level were strongly associated with malnutrition.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of malnutrition in children with cancer is high, which related to worse QOL. Patients' BMI, physical functioning QOL and mothers' educational level could help to predict their nutritional status.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

STRONGkids and SGNA could be widely used in mainland China. Health professionals should pay attention to patients with lower BMI and physical functioning scores, and patients' mother having primary school education or less.