Life Beyond the Clinic: Quantifying the Negative Correlation Between Treatment Duration and Survivor Quality of Life in Breast Cancer Patients
Keywords:
Breast cancer, quality of treatment, oncology, survivorship careAbstract
Background: Improvements in early diagnosis and treatment have led to significant improvements in breast cancer survival, but long-term survivors may still have reduced quality of life (QoL) affected by physical, psychological and social aspects. The purpose of this study was to explore the quality of life of breast cancer survivors and to evaluate the correlation between treatment duration and quality of life. Methods: This cross sectional study with 120 breast cancer survivors used non-probability consecutive sampling technique with a Structured questionnaire to assess quality of life were used to gather data on physical, emotional, social and functional domains. Descriptive data analysis was performed, and inferential data analysis was done through one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation, independent t-test, and multiple linear regression (SPSS 20.0, P value <0.05). Results: The average total QoL score was 62.4 ± 13.7. Patients with a shorter treatment duration (<1 year) had significantly higher scores (71.2 ± 10.5) than patients with a longer treatment duration (>3 years) (55.1 ± 12.3), (p < 0.001). Significant negative correlations were observed between treatment duration and overall QoL (r = −0.56, p < 0.001), physical well-being (r = −0.49, p < 0.001), and emotional well-being (r = −0.52, p < 0.001). Multiple linear regression showed that treatment duration (p < 0.001, β = −0.44), cancer stage (p = 0.002, β = −0.23) and chemotherapy exposure (p = 0.044, β = −0.19) were significant factors in the reduction of QoL. The model elucidated 48% of the variance in QoL outcomes (R² = 0.48, p < 0.001). Conclusions: The length of treatment is a significant factor in quality of life among the survivors of breast cancer and is correlated with poor quality of life. New targeted survivorship care programs emphasizing lifelong follow-up, psychological support, and physical rehabilitation are needed to enhance the well-being of this patient population.
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