Main Session
Sep 29
PQA 07 - Head and Neck Cancer, Lung Cancer/Thoracic Malignancies, and Nursing and Supportive Care

3655 - A Multidimensional Evaluation on Quality of Life in Long-Term Survivors with Cervical Esophageal Cancer after Definitive Chemoradiotherapy

03:45pm - 05:00pm ET
Poster Hall - Exhibit Hall A
Screen: 34
POSTER

Presenter(s)

Jun Wang, MD, PhD, RT Headshot
Jun Wang, MD, PhD, RT - Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei

J. Wang1, F. Jiang2, J. Liang2, J. Wang3, F. Cao3, Z. Zhou4, and F. Yang2; 1Department of Radiation Oncology, the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China, 2the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China, 3Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China, 4Department of Radiation Oncology, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China

Purpose/Objective(s):

Cervical esophageal cancer (CEC) is rare in incidence, and research on its related quality of life is scarcely reported. This study aims to evaluate the quality of life (QoL) for the long-term survivals (=5 years) with CEC who underwent definitive chemoradiotherapy (dCRT) by evaluating physiological function, disease-specific symptoms, nutritional and psychological status, social support, and fatigue, so as to optimize the comprehensive management strategies and tailored the personalized care protocols for them.

Materials/Methods:

A total of 36 CEC patients were enrolled in this study, who received dCRT (radiation dose=50 Gy) between January 1, 2009, and September 30, 2020. Quality of life and functional outcomes were assessed by interview and/or telephone using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 items (QLQ-C30) and EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire Oesophageal Cancer Module 18 items (QLQ-OES18), along with validated tools for Malnutrition Universall Screening Tool(MUST), Distress Management Screening Measure(DMSM), Social Support Rating Scale(SSRS), and Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory-20(MFI-20).

Results:

The median OS was 9.0 years (range, 5-16 years). The median score for Global Health Status was 92.0 (range, 58.0–100.0). Relative impairments were observed in physical (87.0) and cognitive (83.0) functioning. Median scores for dysphagia and eating difficulties were 11.0 and 12.5, respectively. Mental fatigue (MFI-20) remained an issue with a median score of 23.5. Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated that psychological distress was positively correlated with fatigue (r=0.630, P < 0.001) and symptom burden (dysphagia r=0.657, P < 0.001; eating difficulty r=0.738, P < 0.001), but negatively correlated with QoL (r=-0.712, P < 0.001). Multidimensional fatigue showed an strong negative correlation with QoL (r=-0.874, P < 0.001).

Conclusion:

CEC patients achieve favorable long-term survival benefits and maintain a good overall QoL. However, they still experience challenges with impaired physical and cognitive functioning, disease-specific symptoms, and psychological fatigue. Targeted interventions are necessary to improve long-term survivorship quality for them.