Evaluating Dimensions of Fatigue in Men With Prostate Cancer Receiving Radiation Therapy.
Kristin Dickinson, Kevin Kupzyk, Leorey Saligan
PMID 31895173WHAT IT FOUND
During radiation for prostate cancer, total fatigue peaked at treatment midpoint and remained worse at completion; after treatment it returned to baseline.
Men receiving radiation plus androgen deprivation therapy reported worse fatigue than radiation alone.
Key findings
01Total fatigue peaked at the midpoint of treatment and was still worse at treatment completion, then was not significantly different from baseline after treatment.
02Affective fatigue was highest during treatment, while cognitive and behavioral fatigue were worst at treatment completion.
03Men receiving radiation plus ADT had significantly worse fatigue during and after treatment than men receiving radiation alone, but only 10 men received radiation alone.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This was a secondary analysis of existing data, not a randomised trial or an intervention test. Only 57 men were included, and only 10 had radiation alone, so group comparisons were limited by unequal sample sizes. The ADT group had higher Gleason scores than the radiation-alone group, so differences may reflect disease severity as well as treatment. The sample was mostly White and not Hispanic or Latino, so results may not generalise to more diverse groups. ADT timing and regimens varied, and ADT could continue after radiation, so the contribution of ADT alone cannot be separated. No intervention was tested, so the paper cannot show that emotional support, exercise or other strategies reduce fatigue.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The publication types list intramural NIH research support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read worse fatigue in the radiation plus ADT group as proof that ADT caused it. The groups were not randomised, only 10 men received radiation alone, and the ADT group had higher Gleason scores, so disease severity and treatment cannot be separated.