Urology
Volume 72, Issue 6 , Pages 1269-1273, December 2008

Fear of Recurrence, Symptom Burden, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Men With Prostate Cancer

  • Keith M. Bellizzi

      Affiliations

    • Office of Cancer Survivorship, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda Maryland
    • Corresponding Author InformationReprint requests: Keith Bellizzi, Office of Cancer Survivorship, National Cancer Institute, 6116 Executive Blvd., Suite 404, MSC 8336, Bethesda, MD 20892
    • ,
  • David M. Latini

      Affiliations

    • Scott Department of Urology and Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
    • ,
  • Janet E. Cowan

      Affiliations

    • Department of Urology, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, California
    • ,
  • Janeen DuChane

      Affiliations

    • TAP Pharmaceutical Products, Lake Forest, Illinois
    • ,
  • Peter R. Carroll

      Affiliations

    • Department of Urology, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, California

Received 24 August 2007; accepted 17 December 2007. published online 17 March 2008.

Objectives

To examine the contributions of fear of recurrence and the more commonly examined treatment-related symptoms to the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of men treated for localized prostate cancer.

Methods

A total of 730 men with localized disease were identified from the Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor, a national, prospective study of men with prostate cancer. Pre- to post-treatment changes in fear of recurrence, treatment-specific symptoms and burden, comorbidities at diagnosis, number of new symptoms, and post-treatment HRQOL data were analyzed.

Results

Linear regression, adjusted for clinical and demographic characteristics, showed that improved fear of recurrence (P <0.01), higher number of post-treatment symptoms (P <0.01), and improved bowel function (P <0.01) significantly predicted better mental health scores. For physical health, improved urinary bother (P <0.01) and lower number of post-treatment symptoms (P <0.01) were associated with better physical health.

Conclusion

Understanding men's fears about cancer recurrence and how these fears influence physical and mental health are important components of providing care to this growing population.

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 CaPSURE is sponsored by TAP Pharmaceutical Products, Lake Forest, Illinois, and is managed by the Urology Outcomes Research Group at the University of California-San Francisco. Funding was provided by a CaPSURE Scholars Grant from the University of California, San Francisco.

PII: S0090-4295(07)02679-9

doi:10.1016/j.urology.2007.12.084

Urology
Volume 72, Issue 6 , Pages 1269-1273, December 2008

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