Work productivity loss in breast cancer survivors and its effects on quality of life

Work ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Liu Shaxin ◽  
Wang Fengyi ◽  
Yang Qiong ◽  
Wang Quan ◽  
Feng Danling ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: Return to work is an important process for many breast cancer survivors (BCSs) that acts as a positive step towards their reintegration into society. OBJECTIVES: This study examined whether work productivity loss due to presenteeism could predict the quality of life (QOL) of employed BCSs. METHODS: This study used a cross-sectional design. Seventy-five BCSs and seventy-five participants in the Non-Cancer Comparison (NCC) group were surveyed. The main outcome measures were productivity loss (as measured by the Work Limitations questionnaire) and quality of life (as measure by the European Organization for Research and Treatment Quality of Life questionnaire C30). Other measures included psychological distress (as measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and cognitive limitation at work (as measured by the Cognitive Symptom Checklist). RESULTS: The BCS group had a lower summary score, a lower global health related score and greater work limitation in all domains than the NCC group. The productivity loss due to presenteeism of the BCS group was 8%. The multiple regression model shows that work productivity loss and level of job stress were the significant predictors of quality of life in the BCS group. CONCLUSION: These findings raise questions about the effects of level of job stress and work productivity loss on the QOL of BCSs. Longitudinal studies are needed to map these relationships.

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy S.K. Cheng ◽  
Lauren O.C. Lau ◽  
Yvonne N.H. Ma ◽  
Rain H. Ngai ◽  
Sanne S.L. Fong

Objective/Background Employed breast cancer survivors (BCS) may experience residual symptoms that can impact their work productivity and quality of life (QoL), but it is unclear whether such associations exist among BCS in Hong Kong. Therefore, this study was designed to explore the symptom burden (cognitive limitation and psychological distress) of employed BCS in HK, and to investigate whether such factors are related to work productivity and QoL. Methods A cross-sectional study including employed BCS (n = 30), women with musculoskeletal conditions (n = 30), and healthy women (n = 30) was conducted. Participants completed a questionnaire covering their sociodemographics, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Cognitive Symptom Checklist, Work Limitation Questionnaire, and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30. Results The self-perceived cognitive limitations at work of BCS were significantly higher than that of the healthy control group (5.33 vs. 2.60; p < .05). The cognitive limitations in BCS were significantly associated with their QoL (β = —0.320; p = .032). A negative relationship between depression and QoL in BCS was also observed in this study. Conclusion This exploratory study provides local evidence that BCS experience greater work-task related cognitive limitations and that is related to QoL. Similar to findings in other countries, this provides insight for the consideration of early identification of cognitive problems in this particular patient group. Further studies may be needed to further substantiate such findings and to examine the effectiveness of potential cognitive interventions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 216495612096471
Author(s):  
Anand Dhruva ◽  
Cairn Wu ◽  
Christine Miaskowski ◽  
Wendy Hartogensis ◽  
Hope S Rugo ◽  
...  

Purpose Ongoing symptoms and impairments in quality of life (QOL) among breast cancer survivors remain a significant problem. We tested the feasibility and acceptability of a manualized Ayurvedic nutrition and lifestyle intervention for breast cancer survivors. Methods Eligible participants had Stage I–III breast cancer, underwent treatment within the past year that included chemotherapy, and were without active disease. The 4-month individualized Ayurvedic intervention included counseling on nutrition, lifestyle, yoga, and marma (like acupressure) during 8 one-on-one visits with an Ayurvedic practitioner. Feasibility and acceptability were the primary outcomes. QOL (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire [EORTC QLQ C30]) and symptoms—sleep disturbance (General Sleep Disturbance Scale [GSDS]), fatigue (Lee Fatigue Scale [LFS]), depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiological Studies—Depression Scale [CES-D]), anxiety (Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI-S, STAI-T]), and stress (Perceived Stress Scale [PSS])—were measured prior to, at midpoint, and at the end of the 4-month intervention. Effect sizes (Cohen’s d) were calculated along with paired t tests comparing baseline to end of month 4 time points. Mixed effects models were used for repeated measures analyses. Results Participants ( n = 32) had a mean age of 48 years ( SD = 10). Retention at the end of the intervention was 84%. Among those who completed the intervention ( n = 27), adherence was high (99.5% of visits with practitioners attended). Large improvements were seen in QLQ-C30 emotional functioning ( d = 0.84, P < 0.001), QLQ-C30 cognitive functioning ( d = 0.86, P < 0.001), GSDS ( d =  –1.23, P < 0.001), and CES-D ( d =  –1.21, P < 0.001). Moderate improvements were seen in QLQ-C30 global health ( d = 0.65, p = 0.003), LFS ( d =  –0.68, P = 0.002), and PSS ( d =  –0.75, P < 0.001). No adverse events were observed due to the intervention. Conclusion This 4-month Ayurvedic whole-systems multimodal nutrition and lifestyle intervention was feasible and acceptable for breast cancer survivors. Promise of clinical benefit was seen in terms of improvements in symptoms and QOL that warrants further investigation.


2021 ◽  
pp. 65-71
Author(s):  
Anastasia Putu Martha Anggarani ◽  
Raditya Kurniawan Djoar ◽  
Riza Amaliya ◽  
Fredy Eric Akbar Pamungkas

Background: Cancer is a deadly disease for anyone. One type of cancer is breast cancer. This type of cancer has a big psychological impact on sufferers because of the risk of breast removal surgery for sufferers so that cancer can destroy their future and changing quality of life. Decreased quality of life in women with breast cancer causes them to be unable to fulfill their roles, duties and also mantaining health status. Therefore, the purposes of this study are to identified quality of life women with breast cancer. Methods: The method of this study used descriptive analysis, the study was conducted in the breast cancer community in Surabaya, East Java. A total of 30 people became respondents to this study and filled in 30 questions of European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-C-30 (EORTC QLQ C30). Results: The general health of the patients was an 664.25, which illustrates that the quality of life for cancer patients is in moderate condition. This is because in this study the last week symptoms such as shortness of breath, weakness, pain, difficulty sleeping, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, difficulty defecating, diarrhea, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, tension, difficulty walking close, lying in a chair / mattress is reduced or not. They still find it difficult to do strenuous activities, walk long distances, feel worried, have difficulty remembering and exper.ience financial difficulties. However, their lives are not disrupted due to physicality or therapy Conclusion: The general health of breast cancer patients in the Surabaya breast cancer community is an 664.25, which describes the quality of life of cancer patients in moderate condition . It is expected that the hospital can socialize about the group of breast cancer to patients so that patients can share  experience, obtain various health-related information, and will make patients feel they have many friends with cancer fighters so that it will further improve the quality of life


2017 ◽  
Vol 63 (7) ◽  
pp. 583-589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weruska Alcoforado Costa ◽  
José Eleutério Jr. ◽  
Paulo César Giraldo ◽  
Ana Katherine Gonçalves

Summary Objective: To evaluate the influence of functional capacity (FC) and how it affects quality of life (QoL) in breast cancer survivors. Method: A total of 400 breast cancer survivors were studied - 118 without metastasis, 160 with locoregional metastasis and 122 with distant metastasis. The European Organization for Research and Treatment for Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire--Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30), Breast Cancer-Specific (EORTC QLQ-BR23), and the Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) were used to evaluate FC and QoL. Results: Women with distant metastases presented lower KPS 75.3 (SD=12.5) (p<0.001). For QLQ-C30, the mean of the Functional Scale for patients with distant metastasis was 57 (SD=19) (p<0.001), and the mean of the Symptom Scale for patients with distant metastasis was 37 (SD=20) (p<0.001). Both the scales for pain and fatigue showed the highest mean in the groups. For the Global Health Scale, patients without metastasis scored a mean of 62 (SD=24) points, while those with locoregional metastases scored a mean of 63 (SD=21.4), and distant metastasis scored 51.3 (SD=24) points. In the group with distant metastases, 105 (87%) had pain, and the average KPS was 74 (SD=12.0) (p=0.001). Conclusion: Breast cancer was associated with decreased FC, compromised QoL in women with locoregional and distant metastases compared to those without metastasis.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Thöne ◽  
N Obi ◽  
A Jung ◽  
M Schmidt ◽  
J Chang-Claude ◽  
...  

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