Caregivers’ burden and fatigue during and after patients’ treatment with concomitant chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced head and neck cancer: a prospective, observational pilot study

• Published in: Supportive care in cancer Vol. 27; no. 11; pp. 4145 - 4154
• Main Authors: Langenberg, Simone M. C. H., van Herpen, Carla M. L., van Opstal, Claudia C. M., Wymenga, Anke N. M., van der Graaf, Winette T. A., Prins, Judith B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.11.2019; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adult; Cancer; Care and treatment; Caregivers; Caregivers - psychology; Chemoradiotherapy; Chemotherapy; Fatigue; Fatigue - psychology; Female; Head & neck cancer; Head and neck cancer; Head and Neck Neoplasms - therapy; Humans; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mental health; Middle Aged; Nursing; Nursing Research; Oncology; Oncology, Experimental; Original; Original Article; Pain Medicine; Pilot Projects; Prospective Studies; Quality of life; Quality of Life - psychology; Radiation therapy; Rehabilitation Medicine; Spouses - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Netherlands; Fatigue; Burden; LAHNC; Chemoradiotherapy; Caregiver
• ISSN: 0941-4355; 1433-7339
• DOI: 10.1007/s00520-019-04700-9

Purpose Knowledge of caregivers’ burden and fatigue before and after patients’ treatment for locally advanced head and neck cancer is scarce. Therefore, we aimed to explore caregivers’ fatigue and burden in relation to patients’ fatigue, distress, and quality of life. Methods For caregivers, burden and fatigue were assessed. For patients, fatigue severity, distress, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were assessed. Measurements were conducted prior to treatment, 1 week, and 3 months after chemoradiotherapy. Results Caregivers’ burden and fatigue followed patients’ high peak in distress, fatigue, and diminished HRQoL as a consequence of treatment. Caregivers’ baseline fatigue was a predictor for fatigue after chemoradiotherapy. Female spouses with higher baseline levels of fatigue and burden and caring for patients with lower levels of HRQoL seem risk factors for burden after chemoradiotherapy. Conclusions Attention should be paid to caregivers’ burden and fatigue before starting patients’ intense treatment with chemoradiotherapy, as both burden and fatigue before starting treatment may contribute to burden and fatigue after chemoradiotherapy.