Depression as prognostic indicator of survival, nutritional status in head and neck cancer

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

Presence of depression can have a significant impact on patient quality of life and treatment outcomes. This study evaluated the association between presence of pretreatment depression and pretreatment quality of life (QOL), nutritional status, and survival outcomes in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).

The researchers enrolled 241 patients with previously untreated HNSCC who underwent curative treatments. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)-II was used to determine depressive (score ≥14) vs. nondepressive (score <14) patients.

Participants also completed the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) 30-item Core QOL Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) and the EORTC QLQ Head and Neck module (QLQ-H&N35).

Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess whether presence of depression was associated with overall survival, disease-free survival (DFS), or posttreatment changes in nutritional status and laboratory data.

Pretreatment depression was present in 60 patients. Study findings showed 3-year overall survival rates, 3-year DFS rates, and pretreatment serum albumin levels were lower in the depressive patients.

EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-H&N35 scores differed between depressive and nondepressive patients on all items except feeding tube, nutritional supplement, and problem with mouth opening.

The researchers conclude that pretreatment depression has a significant impact on pretreatment QOL, nutritional status, and survival outcomes in patients with HNSCC.