The influence of symptoms on quality of life among patients who have undergone oesophageal cancer surgery

• After oesophagectomy, anatomical changes and loss of function induce various symptoms that may affect quality of life.
• We investigated the relationship between oesophageal cancer-related symptoms and quality of life in cancer surgery patients.
• Dysphagia and eating problems were confirmed to be the most common symptoms affecting the quality of life.
• Effective management of oesophageal cancer-related symptoms leads to improvements in quality of life.

PurposeAfter oesophagectomy, anatomical changes and loss of function induce various symptoms that may affect quality of life (QoL) in oesophageal cancer patients. The purpose of this study was to identify the factors influencing QoL in Korean patients who have undergone oesophageal cancer surgery.MethodThis was a cross-sectional study of a convenience sample consisting of 120 surgery patients with oesophageal cancer. We used the EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-OES18 to measure participants' oesophageal cancer-related symptoms and QoL. Multiple regression analyses were applied to analyse to the relationship between cancer-related symptoms and QoL.ResultsThe average score of oesophageal cancer-related symptoms was 19.28 points, and the most common symptom was reflux. The mean score for global health status/QoL was 60.55. There were significant differences in the functional and symptom subscales according to financial burden, operation type (procedure), and treatment period. Dysphagia most affected global health status/QoL, and eating problems most affected the functional and symptom subscales.ConclusionDysphagia and eating problems were confirmed to be the most common symptoms affecting the QoL of patients who had undergone oesophageal cancer surgery. These results can be used to aid in the development of strategies to better manage symptoms in these patients.