Quality of Life Outcomes and Determining Factors in Breast Cancer Patients Reporting to a Tertiary Care Centre in the Sub-Himalayan Region of India.

PURPOSE

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women worldwide. This study was conducted to determine the quality of life (QOL) outcomes among breast cancer patients in the sub-Himalayan region and, secondly, to identify factors affecting them.

METHOD

The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-C30 and BR-45 questionnaires in English and Hindi translations were used. The BR-45 Hindi translation was obtained using the forward-backward translation method. To check internal consistency and validity, Cronbach's alpha was employed. EORTC scoring manuals were used to score the questionnaires. The analysis of variance test was used to determine the impact of different treatment and sociodemographic factors on QOL domains.

RESULTS

The English and Hindi translations had Cronbach's alpha values of 0.949 and 0.950, respectively, suggesting that the data gathered were reliable. The mean score for global health status was 64.4 ± 29.7, the functional scale (FS) of QLQ_C30 was 76.9 ± 21.5, the FS of BR45 was 64.6 ± 24.1, the symptom scale (SS) of QLQ_C30 was 20.3 ± 19.2, and the SS of BR45 was 22.5 ± 19.1. Factors adversely affecting global health status included younger age, pre/perimenopausal status, and ongoing chemotherapy. Functional scales were significantly affected by marital status and earlier stages of the disease. Symptom scales were adversely affected by ongoing chemotherapy, an earlier stage of the disease, and a duration of treatment of less than six months.

CONCLUSION

Tailoring treatment to reduce radiotherapy, surgery, and systemic therapy-related side effects may improve QOL. Counselling and social support groups may help patients cope with the burden of family and societal roles.