Cancer de mama, menopausa e qualidade de vida

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2005

RESUMO

Objectives - To compare the prevalence of menopausal symptoms, ratio of sexually active women and quality of life (QOL) in women with and without breast cancer and identify factors associated with QOL in breast cancer patients. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on women aged between 45 and 65 years, who had not received hormone therapy or tamoxifen in the last six months. Participants were selected from the Breast Cancer and Menopause Outpatient Facilities of the Centro de Atenção Integral à Saúde da Mulher at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Ninety-seven women with breast cancer and 85 women without breast cancer were included. Sociodemographic and clinical features, and prevalence of menopausal symptoms were described in each group. QOL was assessed by the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) questionnaire. To compare sociodemographic and clinical features between groups, the Student?s t test and Fisher?s exact test were used. Multiple logistic regression and linear regression models were used to control for potential confounding variables. Then, the generalized linear model allowed identification of the likely factors associated with QOL in women with breast cancer. Results: The mean age was 53.2±6.2 years for participants with breast cancer and 57.8±4.9 years for those without breast cancer (p<0.01). The mean age at menopause was 47.2±5.1 years and 47.4±4.9 years for women with and without breast cancer (p=0.76), respectively. Approximately 25% of women with cancer and 4.7% of participants without cancer were premenopausal (p<0.01). There was no difference between groups on the prevalence of menopausal symptoms. Among vasomotor symptoms, hot flashes were the most prevalent symptoms with a frequency of 53.6% for women with cancer and 50.6% for those without cancer (p=0.70). Women with breast cancer reported having less sexual activity (51.5%) than women without cancer (62.4%) (p<0.01). QOL was good in both groups. There was a significant difference regarding the physical functioning dominion, with a median score of 90 for the cancer group and 75 for the group without cancer (p<0.01). Menopausal symptoms, being married, postmenopausal status and breast-conserving surgery were negatively associated with QOL in women with breast cancer. Conclusion: The prevalence of menopausal symptoms was similar in women with and without breast cancer. Sexual activity was less frequent in women with breast cancer. QOL was good in women with and without breast cancer, although women with breast cancer have better physical functioning scores. Factors that were negatively associated with QOL and represented common events in a woman?s life (menopausal symptoms, postmenopause and being married) were identified. These factors should be the target for future interventions to minimize their repercussions on QOL. Health care professionals must discuss these issues with breast cancer patients to inform women about the treatment options available and help them decide on the most suitable therapy

ASSUNTO(S)

qualidade de vida mamas - cancer menopausa neoplasias mamarias

ACESSO AO ARTIGO

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