Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39075789›Full record

ArticleJournal of clinical nursing2025

Symptom clusters and sentinel symptoms in breast cancer survivors based on self-reported outcomes:A cross-sectional survey.

Xiaomeng Lu, Wenhui Geng, Fengxia Liu, Yunteng Yin, Junpu Yin, Yuanyuan Zhang, Lei Li, Shanshan Li, Mengmeng Li

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of clinical nursing, 2025. 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.

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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

9 authors.

Xiaomeng LuRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.ORCID 0009-0001-6331-1557
Wenhui GengRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Fengxia LiuDepartment of Nursing, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Yunteng YinDepartment of Otolaryngology, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Junpu YinRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Yuanyuan ZhangRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Lei LiRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Shanshan LiRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
Mengmeng LiRadiotherapy Department, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.

Funding

Hebei Provincial Health and Wellness Commission 20241179
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimTo investigate symptom clusters and sentinel symptoms in breast cancer survivors based on self-reported outcomes, explore the impact of sentinel symptoms on patients' quality of life and psychological distress, provide a basis for implementing accurate symptom management.

designA cross-sectional survey.

methodsThe study was conducted from September 2021 to December 2022. We recruited 281 patients who were re-examined in an outpatient department of a tertiary hospital in Hebei Province. The European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality-of-Life Questionnaire - Core30 (QLQ-C30), the EORTC Quality-of-Life Questionnaire Breast Cancer - 23 (QLQ-BR23), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to conduct the survey. Symptom clusters were explored using principal component analysis, sentinel symptoms were explored using the Apriori algorithm. Correlation analysis was used to explore the relationship between sentinel symptoms and quality of life, correlation with psychological distress. This paper adhered to the STROBE guidelines.

resultsBreast cancer survivors have a wide range of self-reported symptoms in the form of four symptom clusters: a fatigue symptom cluster, a gastrointestinal symptom cluster, a sickness symptom cluster and a surgical trauma-related symptom cluster. Three sentinel symptoms were explored: pain, alopecia and limited function of the upper limbs. Except for sexual function, all of the sentinel symptoms were negatively correlated with patients' quality of life and positively correlated with psychological distress (p < .05).

conclusionsBreast cancer survivors have a variety of symptoms in the form of four symptom clusters. Pain, alopecia and limited function of the upper limbs are the sentinel symptoms, which affect patients' quality of life and psychological distress.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsCancer SurvivorsQuality of LifeSelf ReportAdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMiddle AgedSurveys and Questionnairesapriori algorithmbreast neoplasmcancer survivorsnursing caresentinel symptomssymptom cluster

Identifiers

PMID39075789
PMCPMC11808415

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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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.