Mental Health-related Quality of Life is Associated with Diet Quality Among Survivors of Breast Cancer

Objective: This study sought to understand the association of mental health-related quality of life (MHRQoL) and nutritional status (food security status and malnutrition risk), with diet quality among female survivors of breast cancer.

Method: This pilot cross-sectional study utilized self-report survey data from the RAND-36, the USDA 2-item food insecurity screen, the Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST), and the Diet History Questionnaire II (DHQII)/Health Eating Index 2015 (HEI). Participants self-selected participation after being identified through an academic medical center cancer registry and contact through mailed recruitment letters and flyers posted in oncology clinics. Emotional well-being and social functioning composite scores of the RAND-36 were used to characterize MHRQoL. Correlational and regression analyses were performed to assess the association of diet quality, nutritional status, and MHRQoL.

Results: The majority of participants (n = 90) were non-Hispanic white (90%), average age of 71.3 ± 8.1 years, and an average body mass index (BMI) of 28.2 ± 6.6. Four of the 90 participants (4.4%) scored at risk for food insecurity. Linear regression indicated that social functioning composite scores were positively associated with HEI scores (β = 0.11, SE = 0.53, p = 0.03). Controlling for demographic characteristics, education level (β = 5.25, SE = 2.25, p = 0.02) was positively associated with HEI scores.

Conclusion: Diet quality and MHRQoL were associated among breast cancer survivors, with education level also being associated with diet quality. These results can be used to aid targeted nutrition counseling and mental health interventions to address the nutritional vulnerabilities among female breast cancer survivors, particularly among older cancer survivors.