The effect of gefitinib on the quality of life in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer / 中国癌症杂志

ABSTRACT

Background and purpose:To improve the quality of life of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer is one of the problems which the oncologists have to be aware of. Gefi tinib has been used to treat advanced non-small cell lung cancer. We studied the effect of gefi tinib in the improvement of quality of life of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Methods:There were 70 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated in our cancer center. One oral gefi tinib tablet(250 mg) was administered every day without interruption unless disease progression or unacceptable toxicity occurred. The impact of treatment on disease-related symptoms and quality of life(QoL) were evaluated with the Chinese versions of European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaires(EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-LC13) . Results:58 patients finished the questionnaires. The mean scores of fi ve functional scales(physical,role,emotional cognitional and social) were 63,56,68,65,61 respectively after eight weeks of treatment,compared to 52,49,64,60,52 respectively before treatment,and the mean score of global QoL after and before treatment were 60 and 53 respectively. There were statistical differences in fi ve functional scales and global QoL(P