Sleep disturbance in cancer patients referred to an ambulatory integrative oncology consultation

Background: The factors associated with sleep disturbances in cancer patients remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the prevalence of sleep disorders and predictors associated with sleep disturbance in cancer patients from a radiotherapy department.Methods: Patients with cancers were recruited before the start of radiotherapy from our institution between January 2019 and February 2020. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) scale was used to assess sleep quality. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to conduct statistical analysis.Results: A total of 330 eligible patients were included. Of them, 38.3% (n = 127) had the globe PSQI score >7, indicating that they suffered from sleep disorders. Patients with lung cancer (45.2%) were more likely to suffer from sleep disturbance, followed by cervical cancer (43.8%), nasopharyngeal carcinoma (41.7%), esophageal cancer (41.5%), breast cancer (37.7%), and colorectal cancer (30%). With regard to the PSQI components, the mean sleep duration was 8 h, 20.3% (n = 67) of them reported poor subjective sleep quality, 6.1% (n = 20) needed medication to improve sleep, and 53.6% (n = 177) suffered daytime dysfunction. Multivariate logistic regression models showed body mass index (BMI) ≥ 20 kg/m2 [odds ratio (OR) 0.599, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.329–0.948, P = 0.031] and the receipt of surgery (OR 0.507, 95% CI 0.258–0.996, P = 0.048) were the significant favorable predictors for sleep disturbance, while age, gender, marital status, education level, comorbidity, metastasis status, diagnostic status, and cancer type were not significantly associated with sleep disturbance.Conclusions: Approximately 40% of the cancer patients suffer from sleep disturbance before the start of radiotherapy. Patients with BMI ≥ 20 kg/m2 and receiving surgery are less likely to develop sleep disturbance in comparison with others.

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Daily Collection of Self-Reporting Sleep Disturbance Data via a Smartphone App in Breast Cancer Patients Receiving Chemotherapy: A Feasibility Study (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.3421 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Yul Ha Min ◽

Jong Won Lee ◽

Yong-Wook Shin ◽

Min-Woo Jo ◽

Guiyun Sohn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Sleep Disturbance ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Compliance Rate ◽

Self Report ◽

Smartphone App ◽

Breast Cancer Patients ◽

Individual Patient Level ◽

Patient Level ◽

Compliance Curve

BACKGROUND Improvements in mobile telecommunication technologies have enabled clinicians to collect patient-reported outcome (PRO) data more frequently, but there is as yet limited evidence regarding the frequency with which PRO data can be collected via smartphone applications (apps) in breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. OBJECTIVE The primary objective of this study was to determine the feasibility of an app for sleep disturbance-related data collection from breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. A secondary objective was to identify the variables associated with better compliance in order to identify the optimal subgroups to include in future studies of smartphone-based interventions. METHODS Between March 2013 and July 2013, patients who planned to receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer at Asan Medical Center who had access to a smartphone app were enrolled just before the start of their chemotherapy and asked to self-report their sleep patterns, anxiety severity, and mood status via a smartphone app on a daily basis during the 90-day study period. Push notifications were sent to participants daily at 9 am and 7 pm. Data regarding the patients’ demographics, interval from enrollment to first self-report, baseline Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) score, and health-related quality of life score (as assessed using the EuroQol Five Dimensional [EQ5D-3L] questionnaire) were collected to ascertain the factors associated with compliance with the self-reporting process. RESULTS A total of 30 participants (mean age 45 years, SD 6; range 35-65 years) were analyzed in this study. In total, 2700 daily push notifications were sent to these 30 participants over the 90-day study period via their smartphones, resulting in the collection of 1215 self-reporting sleep-disturbance data items (overall compliance rate=45.0%, 1215/2700). The median value of individual patient-level reporting rates was 41.1% (range 6.7-95.6%). The longitudinal day-level compliance curve fell to 50.0% at day 34 and reached a nadir of 13.3% at day 90. The cumulative longitudinal compliance curve exhibited a steady decrease by about 50% at day 70 and continued to fall to 45% on day 90. Women without any form of employment exhibited the higher compliance rate. There was no association between any of the other patient characteristics (ie, demographics, and BDI and EQ5D-3L scores) and compliance. The mean individual patient-level reporting rate was higher for the subgroup with a 1-day lag time, defined as starting to self-report on the day immediately after enrollment, than for those with a lag of 2 or more days (51.6%, SD 24.0 and 29.6%, SD 25.3, respectively; <i>P</i>=.03). CONCLUSIONS The 90-day longitudinal collection of daily self-reporting sleep-disturbance data via a smartphone app was found to be feasible. Further research should focus on how to sustain compliance with this self-reporting for a longer time and select subpopulations with higher rates of compliance for mobile health care.

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The Current Status of Integrative Oncology in Korea

Integrative Cancer Therapies ◽

10.1177/15347354211063809 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 20 ◽

pp. 153473542110638

Author(s):

Eun-Bin Kwag ◽

Soo-Dam Kim ◽

Ji Hye Park ◽

So-Jung Park ◽

Mi-Kyung Jeong ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Causes Of Death ◽

Survival Rates ◽

Current Status ◽

Integrative Oncology ◽

Recurrence Rates ◽

Current State ◽

Look Ahead

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and Korea is no exception. Humanity has been fighting cancer for many years, and as a result, we now have effective treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. However, there are other issues that we are only now beginning to address, such as cancer patients’ quality of life. Moreover, numerous studies show that addressing these issues holistically is critical for overall cancer treatment and survival rates. This paper describes how Korea is attempting to reduce cancer incidence and recurrence rates while also managing the quality of life of cancer patients. Integrative Oncology is the field that addresses these broad issues, and understanding the current state of integrative oncology in Korea is critical. The goal of this paper is to provide an overview of the current state of integrative oncology in Korea as well as to look ahead to future developments.

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