Department of Clinical Oncology, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, New Territories, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Division of Epidemiology, The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, New Territories, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Menopause. 2021 Apr 19;28(8):928-934. doi: 10.1097/GME.0000000000001784.
This study assessed menopausal symptoms (MPS) after breast cancer in relation to quality of life (QoL) during the first 5 years of survival.
An ongoing prospective study enrolled 1,462 Chinese women with early-stage breast cancer. They were longitudinally followed up at four time-points, namely baseline, 18-, 36-, and 60-month after diagnosis. At each follow-up, Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 were used to assess MPS and QoL, respectively.
In total, 1,462, 1,289, 1,125, and 1,116 patients were included into the analyses at baseline, 18-, 36-, and 60-months, respectively. The percentages of patients with no or little, mild, moderate, and severe MPS at baseline were 31.8%, 30.0%, 30.4%, and 7.7%, respectively; the corresponding figures at 18-, 36-, and 60-month follow-up were similar. Using data from four follow-ups, Generalized Estimating Equations analyses showed that MPS was inversely associated with QoL. Higher MRS scores were related to lower QoL scores. For instance, every 1 point increase in MRS score was associated with a 1.5 point decrease in global health status/QoL score (P < 0.01). In terms of symptoms, higher MRS scores were related to more severe symptoms.
This study highlighted patients with more severe MPS tend to have worse QoL. Future investigation should be conducted to assess different means of alleviating MPS to improve patient's QoL.
本研究评估了乳腺癌患者生存 5 年内的更年期症状（MPS）与生活质量（QoL）之间的关系。
一项正在进行的前瞻性研究纳入了 1462 例早期乳腺癌的中国女性患者。她们在诊断后 4 个时间点（基线、18 个月、36 个月和 60 个月）进行了纵向随访。在每次随访中，使用绝经评定量表（MRS）和欧洲癌症研究与治疗组织生活质量问卷核心 30 分别评估 MPS 和 QoL。
总共在基线、18 个月、36 个月和 60 个月时，有 1462、1289、1125 和 1116 例患者纳入分析。基线时无或轻度、轻度、中度和重度 MPS 的患者比例分别为 31.8%、30.0%、30.4%和 7.7%；在 18、36 和 60 个月的随访中，相应的比例相似。使用四次随访的数据，广义估计方程分析显示 MPS 与 QoL 呈负相关。较高的 MRS 评分与较低的 QoL 评分相关。例如，MRS 评分每增加 1 分，总体健康状况/QoL 评分就会降低 1.5 分（P<0.01）。就症状而言，较高的 MRS 评分与更严重的症状相关。
本研究强调了 MPS 更严重的患者往往具有更差的 QoL。未来的研究应评估不同缓解 MPS 的方法，以提高患者的 QoL。
