Health Related Quality of Life and Its Determinants in Nigerian Breast Cancer Patients

Breast cancer, the commonest malignancy in women, is now the most common cancer in Nigeria, but little is known about the quality of life (QOL) of Nigerian women breast cancer survivors and the predictive factors that may influence their QOL. Health-related QOL (HRQOL) was evaluated in 35 Nigerian women receiving radiotherapy for breast cancer at the University College Hospital, Ibadan by using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) quality of life questionnaire (QLQ - C30 version 3). Linear regression procedures were used to evaluate the association of HRQOL outcomes with medical and socio-demographic factors. Physical functioning (PF), Emotional functioning (EF) and Cognitive functioning (CF) scores were above average (76.9 +/- 20.6, 61.9 +/- 30.3 and 60.0 +/- 32.1 respectively) while Role functioning (RF) and Social functioning (SF) scores were below average (46.2 +/- 36.6 and 40.9 +/- 42.8 respectively). High symptom scale scores were recorded for fatigue, pain and financial difficulties (52.7 +/- 32.8, 59.1 +/- 34.4 and 71.4 +/- 38.8 respectively). Age had no significant influence on any of the functional and symptom scale scores as well as the overall QOL. The overall QOL was significantly related to PF, CF and SF. It was also significantly and inversely related to the scores of fatigue, nausea and vomitng, pain, insomnia and financial difficulty. The findings of this study provide important information on QOL and their correlates among Nigerian women undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer and are helpful in developing treatment strategies accordingly.