Evidence map›Paper›PMID 20730547›Full record

Trial reportSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2011

The relationship between weight loss and health-related quality of life in persons treated for head and neck cancer.

Barbara A Head, Luke Heitz, Cynthia Keeney, John Myers, Savitri N Appana, Jamie L Studts, Jeffrey Bumpous, Mark Pfeifer

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Faster Triage of Veterans With Head and Neck Cancer.Federal practitioner : for the health care professionals of the VA, DoD, and PHS · 2016
    Article
  6. Differences in quality of life in obese and normal weight head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2015
    Article
  7. The head and neck symptom checklist©: an instrument to evaluate nutrition impact symptoms effect on energy intake and weight loss.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2013
    Article
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Barbara A HeadUniversity of Louisville School of Medicine, MDR Bldg., Suite 110, 511 South Floyd St., Ste. 110, Louisville, KY 40202, USA. barbara.head@louisville.edu
Luke Heitz
Cynthia Keeney
John Myers
Savitri N Appana
Jamie L Studts
Jeffrey Bumpous
Mark Pfeifer

Funding

Telehealth Symptom Management in Head and Neck CancerR21CA115345 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE · PI PFEIFER, MARK P. · 2005 to 2006
$234k
NCI NIH HHS R21 CA115345
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThis study explores the relationship between weight loss, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and symptom burden in patients treated for head and neck cancers.

methodsParticipants completed the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Head and Neck (FACT-H&N) and the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS) pre-treatment, mid-treatment, and post-treatment. Weights were recorded prior to treatment and at the post-treatment follow-up visit, and percentage weight loss was tabulated. Relationships between weight loss, HRQOL, and symptom burden were evaluated using the nonparametric Spearman rho. A simple linear regression model was developed to examine the influence weight loss has on HRQOL in a predictive manner.

resultsAverage weight loss per patient was 12 lb with a modal value of 19. Weight loss was found to be significantly correlated with decreases in physical well-being, functional well-being, the Head and Neck specific subscale, and composite QOL scores. No significant correlations were found between weight loss and symptom burden as measured by the MSAS. Linear regression suggested that a 10% decrease in baseline weight resulted in a 19% decrease in the FACT-H&N score.

conclusionThe strong association between weight loss and HRQOL supports the importance of efforts to prevent weight loss via patient education, aggressive monitoring, and immediate intervention to stop or reverse weight loss during treatment. New approaches to the weight loss and wasting experienced by patients should be developed and tested.

Indexed as

Quality of LifeWeight LossAdultAgedAged, 80 and overFemaleFollow-Up StudiesHead and Neck NeoplasmsHumansLinear ModelsMaleMiddle AgedPatient Education as TopicProspective StudiesSurveys and Questionnaires

Identifiers

PMID20730547
PMCPMC4177674

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.