Gillman Anna, Hayes Michelle, Walsh Irene, Walshe Margaret, Reynolds John V, Regan Julie
Department of Clinical Speech and Language Studies, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.
Department of Surgery, St James' Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland.
Int J Speech Lang Pathol. 2025 Aug;27(4):494-505. doi: 10.1080/17549507.2024.2360065. Epub 2024 Jul 19.
The impact of long-term aerodigestive symptoms following oesophageal cancer surgery is still not well understood. This study aimed to qualitatively understand the long-term impact of aerodigestive symptoms on quality of life in adults post-oesophagectomy.
Participants who received curative transhiatal/transthoracic surgery for oesophageal cancer in Ireland's National Oesophageal Cancer Centre were invited to attend semi-structured interviews. Surgery had to be completed at least 12 months prior. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted.
Forty participants were interviewed individually face-to-face. Four key themes were identified: (a) isolation, reflecting the reported solitude experienced by oesophageal cancer survivors when attempting to manage their ongoing aerodigestive symptoms; (b) fear, including fear of choking and fear that dysphagia symptoms may indicate recurrence of oesophageal cancer; (c) altered work capacity, caused by ongoing aerodigestive symptoms; and (d) avoidance of social situations involving food, due to the pain, discomfort, and embarrassment caused by these symptoms.
Oesophageal cancer treatment can be lifesaving, however, such medical interventions can result in distressing physiological aerodigestive symptoms throughout survivorship, which can significantly impact quality of life. Our findings indicate a need for greater community support to manage aerodigestive symptoms and reduce the impact these have on quality of life.
食管癌手术后长期的气消化道症状的影响仍未得到充分理解。本研究旨在定性了解气消化道症状对食管癌切除术后成年人生活质量的长期影响。
邀请在爱尔兰国家食管癌中心接受了食管癌根治性经裂孔/开胸手术的参与者参加半结构化访谈。手术必须至少在12个月前完成。进行了反思性主题分析。
对40名参与者进行了单独的面对面访谈。确定了四个关键主题：(a) 孤立，反映了食管癌幸存者在试图处理持续的气消化道症状时所报告的孤独感；(b) 恐惧，包括对窒息的恐惧以及对吞咽困难症状可能表明食管癌复发的恐惧；(c) 工作能力改变，由持续的气消化道症状引起；(d) 由于这些症状导致的疼痛、不适和尴尬而避免涉及食物的社交场合。
食管癌治疗可以挽救生命，然而，这种医疗干预在整个生存期内可能导致令人痛苦的生理性气消化道症状，这可能会显著影响生活质量。我们的研究结果表明需要更多的社区支持来管理气消化道症状并减少其对生活质量的影响。
