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Quality of life among women recently diagnosed with invasive breast cancer: the Pathways Study

  • Epidemiology
  • Published:
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Abstract

Few studies have assessed quality of life (QOL) of women diagnosed with breast cancer within the first few weeks of their initial diagnosis. We describe QOL among 950 women recently diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. Starting in January 2006, we invited women aged ≥21 years who were diagnosed with first primary invasive breast cancer within Kaiser Permanente Northern California (KPNC) to enroll in the Pathways Study, a prospective study of breast cancer survivorship. QOL was measured using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast Cancer (FACT-B), along with sociodemographic and social support information. Clinical characteristics were obtained from the KPNC cancer registry and electronic medical record. We used multivariable linear regression models to identify factors associated with QOL scores calculated from the FACT-B. The mean age ± SD of the sample was 59.6 years (±11.9 years), and the mean time ±SD from diagnosis until interview was 8.0 weeks (±3.2 weeks). Younger age at diagnosis was associated with lower scores in all QOL domains (P < 0.01), and later stage at diagnosis was associated with lower scores in all domains (P < 0.05) except for social well-being. Higher levels of social support were associated with higher QOL except for physical well-being (P < 0.05). These associations were stronger within 2 months of breast cancer diagnosis. Quality of life as influenced by a diagnosis of breast cancer is an important factor in cancer survivorship. Age, stage at diagnosis, and social support are key factors in this important variable.

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Acknowledgments

The Pathways Study is funded by the National Institutes of Health (R01 CA105274, R01 CA124924, and R01 CA127617), the Department of Defense (BC043120), and the American Cancer Society (RSG-06-209-01-LR). We thank Anita L. Stewart, Ph.D. at University of California, San Francisco for consultation on the quality of life scales, Jeanne Darbinian, MS, RD at Kaiser Permanente, Division of Research, for additional programming support, and other office and field staff for data collection, processing, and preparation. We thank all Pathways Study participants for their numerous contributions to this study. The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the funding agencies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente, 2000 Broadway, Oakland, CA, 94612, USA

    Marilyn L. Kwan, Isaac Joshua Ergas, Carol P. Somkin, Charles P. Quesenberry Jr., Michael P. Pelayo, Allegra W. Timperi, Sunita Q. Miles & Lawrence H. Kushi

  2. Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Alfred I. Neugut & Dawn L. Hershman

  3. Department of Medicine and Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Alfred I. Neugut & Dawn L. Hershman

  4. Department of Oncology and Medicine, Georgetown University Medical Center, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Washington, DC, USA

    Jeanne Mandelblatt

  5. Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Michael P. Pelayo

Authors
  1. Marilyn L. Kwan
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  2. Isaac Joshua Ergas
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  3. Carol P. Somkin
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  4. Charles P. Quesenberry Jr.
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  5. Alfred I. Neugut
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  6. Dawn L. Hershman
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  9. Allegra W. Timperi
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  10. Sunita Q. Miles
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Correspondence to Marilyn L. Kwan.

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Kwan, M.L., Ergas, I.J., Somkin, C.P. et al. Quality of life among women recently diagnosed with invasive breast cancer: the Pathways Study. Breast Cancer Res Treat 123, 507–524 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-010-0764-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-010-0764-8

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