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. 2015 Nov;36(6):328-34.
doi: 10.4082/kjfm.2015.36.6.328. Epub 2015 Nov 20.

Factors Associated with Fatigue in Korean Gastric Cancer Survivors

Wan Park  1 , Jung-Kwon Lee  1 , Cho-Rong Kim  1 , Jin-Young Shin  1
Affiliations

Factors Associated with Fatigue in Korean Gastric Cancer Survivors

Wan Park et al. Korean J Fam Med. 2015 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Gastric cancer is the second most common cancer in Korea. Fatigue is a common symptom among cancer survivors. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with fatigue in gastric cancer survivors.

Methods: Data were analyzed from 199 gastric cancer survivors who visited a cancer survivor outpatient clinic from July 2013 to June 2014. Patients were surveyed using a questionnaire containing a fatigue severity scale (FSS) and questions regarding associated symptoms. Participants were divided into fatigue (FSS) and non-fatigue groups based on FSS scores (≥4 and <4, respectively). Age, sex, weight, body mass index, cancer stage, pathology, surgery type, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, comorbid disease, family history of cancer, smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise, and laboratory results were investigated.

Results: The fatigue and non-fatigue groups contained 42 and 157 survivors, respectively. Their mean age was 58 years, and the mean post-operative period was 6.58 years. Arthralgia (odds ratio [OR], 12.95; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.21-52.34), dyspnea (OR, 10.54; 95% CI, 2.94-37.80), dyspepsia (OR, 8.26; 95% CI, 2.63-25.96), changed bowel habits (OR, 4.56; 95% CI, 1.09-19.11), anemia (OR, 3.18; 95% CI, 1.26-8.05), and regular exercise (OR, 0.31; 95% CI, 0.12-0.77) were significantly associated with fatigue in gastric cancer survivors, while weight, treatment, and depressive mood were not.

Conclusion: Arthralgia, dyspnea, dyspepsia, bowel habit change, anemia, and regular exercise are associated with fatigue in gastric cancer survivors.

Keywords: Fatigue; Stomach Neoplasms; Survivors.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST: No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Distribution of FSS scores in gastric cancer survivors. The normal curve for FSS scores among all participants is represented by the solid line. FSS, fatigue severity scale.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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