Influencing factors on quality of life in women undergoing cancer treatment: a cross-sectional study.
Hyun Jin Jung, Yu Jin Hong, Seo Young Hong and 1 others
PMID 41090268WHAT IT FOUND
Higher QoL was associated with less death anxiety, better daily-activity ability, and better perceived health in 101 hospitalized women with cancer.
Body image and household labor were not significant predictors.
Key findings
01Death anxiety, performance status, and perceived health status were significant predictors of QoL, and these variables explained 49.0% of the variance.
02Body image and division of household labor were not significant predictors in the regression model.
03QoL was higher in participants with a university degree or higher than in those with only a high school education, and higher in women without recurrence than in women with recurrence.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was done in one hospital in one region, so it may not apply to women with cancer elsewhere. It was cross-sectional, so it cannot show which factors caused lower QoL. Participants reported their own symptoms and experiences, and 110 questionnaires were collected with 9 excluded for missing responses, leaving 101 analysed. Approximately 20% of participants did not know their cancer stage, which could have affected self-reported data. The household-labor scale was developed for women with retired husbands, but the mean age in this study was 55.29 years and most participants were relatively younger women living with their spouses, so it may not have fit the sample. Only married women with solid cancers, hospitalized, and not taking psychiatric medication since diagnosis were included, so findings may not apply to unmarried women, people with hematologic cancers, or those receiving psychiatric treatment.
Declared interests
Ju-Hee Nho was an associate editor of the journal since January 2021 but was not involved in the review process. Otherwise there was no conflict of interest. Funding: none.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that reducing death anxiety, improving performance status, or changing perceived health will raise QoL. This was a one-time survey, and no intervention was tested.