The Influence of Multiple Chronic Conditions on Symptom Clusters in People With Solid Tumor Cancers.
Seyedehtanaz Saeidzadeh, Yelena Perkhounkova, Stephanie Gilbertson-White and 1 others
PMID 33577204WHAT IT FOUND
Having more chronic conditions did not clearly worsen symptom severity, daily-life interference, or quality of life in adults with solid tumors receiving chemotherapy.
Four clusters emerged: nutrition, neuro-cognitive, abdominal discomfort, and respiratory.
Key findings
01Four symptom clusters were identified: nutrition, neuro-cognitive, abdominal discomfort, and respiratory.
02Chronic-condition groups did not show meaningful differences in symptom severity for any cluster across visits.
03Chronic-condition groups did not show significant differences in symptom interference or quality of life.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
People were recruited from chemotherapy clinic visits, so they may not represent all cancer patients. The analysis excluded people who reported no symptoms on Day 7, so it says less about patients who felt well that week. Patients received different chemotherapy drugs within the same three-week cycle, which could affect symptoms. The chronic-condition measure was modified and was not designed to capture how burdensome each condition was or how long it had been present. The study compared groups at separate visits mainly with graphs, not a detailed test of change over time.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest were disclosed.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that chronic conditions are irrelevant to symptom burden. This study did not find meaningful differences, but it used a modified count of conditions, excluded people with no Day 7 symptoms, and varied chemotherapy regimens, so it cannot rule out clinically important effects.