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Quality of life and metastatic breast cancer: the role of body image, disease site, and time since diagnosis

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Abstract

Purpose

Too little is understood about the quality of life (QoL) concerns of patients diagnosed with advanced disease. While body image has been found to be consistently important for women with early-stage breast cancer, the impact of body image on women with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is less frequently studied. This cross-sectional study aimed to identify factors affecting QoL in a sample of patients diagnosed with MBC, with particular attention to body image, disease site, and time since diagnosis.

Methods

In total, 113 women diagnosed with MBC completed two QoL scales (EORTC QLQ30; EORTC BR23) as part of a larger study. Clinical characteristics were obtained via medical record review. Demographics, disease characteristics, and clinical factors were examined.

Results

Time since diagnosis and location of metastases were found to affect patients’ QoL, and most strikingly, this effect often differed for those with higher and lower body image. Body image appears to remain highly influential even for those living with a shortened life expectancy.

Conclusions

These findings indicate that the development of QoL support should more carefully consider patients diagnosed with MBC and the unique sets of body concerns that affect this population.

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Notes

  1. Visceral disease includes metastases in the brain, liver, lungs, pericardium, pleura or mediastinum, bowel or peritoneum, or ovaries.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Tracey Revenson for comments on an earlier draft of this paper. This work was supported by the Comprehensive Cancer Center, Cancer Research Committee, University of Michigan and the Institute for Research on Women and Gender, University of Michigan.

Ethical standard

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Psychology and Women’s Studies, University of Michigan, 204 South State St., Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA

    Sara I. McClelland & Kathryn J. Holland

  2. Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School and Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Jennifer J. Griggs

Authors
  1. Sara I. McClelland
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  2. Kathryn J. Holland
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  3. Jennifer J. Griggs
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Correspondence to Sara I. McClelland.

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McClelland, S.I., Holland, K.J. & Griggs, J.J. Quality of life and metastatic breast cancer: the role of body image, disease site, and time since diagnosis. Qual Life Res 24, 2939–2943 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-015-1034-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-015-1034-3

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