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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · South Asian J Cancer 2015; 04(04): 179-182
DOI: 10.4103/2278-330X.175955
HEAD AND NECK CANCER : Review Article

A relationship between quality-of-life and head and neck cancer: A systemic review

Sujal Mitul Parkar
Department of Public Health Dentistry, Siddhpur Dental College and Hospital, Patan, Gujarat
,
Mihir N. Shah
Department of Periodontology, Ahmedabad Dental College and Hospital, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
› Author Affiliations Source of Support: Nil.
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Abstract

Aim: The aim was to identify the literature and to assess the association between quality-of-life (QoL) and head and neck cancer (HNC) related outcomes systemically. Materials and Methods: The full articles published in English language bio-medical journals between 1992 and December 2014 were searched using Medline database. The keywords used for searching the articles include the combination of "health-related of QoL," "QoL," "HNC." The search limited only to the observational studies using questionnaires European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ C 30 and EORTC QLQ H and N 35. Purely psychological studies were excluded. Results: A total of 5055 articles were retrieved, and 16 articles were selected for this review. Of 16 observational studies, 13 (81.25%) were prospective cohort studies while remaining 3 (18.75%) were cross-sectional studies. The main findings of the studies revealed that the treatment of HNC had a statistically significant influence on QoL. Others associated factors like age, female sex, duration of treatment, advance tumor, and site of the tumor has also the impact on QoL on patients suffering from HNC. Conclusion: This review provides evidence for a positive relationship between cancer-related outcomes and QoL. Assessment of QoL in relation to HNC with proper methodology and validated instruments is lacking hence there is a need for further evidence to support the relation between cancer and QoL.

Key words

Head and neck cancer - neoplasm - observational studies - quality-of-life - review


Publication History

Article published online:
31 December 2020

© 2015. MedIntel Services Pvt Ltd. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.)

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