Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Sep;25(9):2911-2918.
doi: 10.1007/s00520-017-3746-0. Epub 2017 May 20.

Prevalence and impact of severe fatigue in adolescent and young adult cancer patients in comparison with population-based controls

Hanneke Poort  1 , Suzanne E J Kaal  2 , Hans Knoop  3   4 , Rosemarie Jansen  2 , Judith B Prins  5 , Eveliene Manten-Horst  2 , Petra Servaes  5 , Olga Husson  5 , Winette T A van der Graaf  2   6
Affiliations

Prevalence and impact of severe fatigue in adolescent and young adult cancer patients in comparison with population-based controls

Hanneke Poort et al. Support Care Cancer. 2017 Sep.

Erratum in

Abstract

Purpose: The current study determined the prevalence of severe fatigue in adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients (aged 18-35 years at diagnosis) consulting a multidisciplinary AYA team in comparison with gender- and age-matched population-based controls. In addition, impact of severe fatigue on quality of life and correlates of fatigue severity were examined.

Methods: AYAs with cancer (n = 83) completed questionnaires including the Checklist Individual Strength (CIS-fatigue), Quality of Life (QoL)-Cancer Survivor, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (reflecting psychological distress), and the Cancer Worry Scale (reflecting fear of cancer recurrence or progression).

Results: The vast majority of participants had been treated with chemotherapy (87%) and had no active treatment at the time of participation (73.5%). Prevalence of severe fatigue (CIS-fatigue score ≥35) in AYAs with cancer (48%, n = 40/83) was significantly higher in comparison with matched population-based controls (20%, n = 49/249; p < .001). Severely fatigued AYAs with cancer reported lower QoL compared to non-severely fatigued AYAs with cancer (p < .05). Female gender, being unemployed, higher disease stage (III-IV) at diagnosis, receiving active treatment at the time of study participation, being treated with palliative intent, having had radiotherapy, higher fear of recurrence or progression, and higher psychological distress were significantly correlated with fatigue severity (p < .05).

Conclusions: Severe fatigue based on a validated cut-off score was highly prevalent in this group of AYAs with cancer. QoL is significantly affected by severe fatigue, stressing the importance of detection and management of this symptom in those patients affected by a life-changing diagnosis of cancer in late adolescence or young adulthood.

Keywords: Adolescent and young adult; Cancer; Fatigue; Quality of life.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Funding

This work was supported by the Dutch Cancer Society under Grant number KUN2011-5259.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Barr RD, Ferrari A, Ries L, et al. Cancer in adolescents and young adults: a narrative review of the current status and a view of the future. JAMA Pediatr. 2016;170(5):495–501. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.4689. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Zebrack BJ. Psychological, social, and behavioral issues for young adults with cancer. Cancer. 2011;117(10 Suppl):2289–2294. doi: 10.1002/cncr.26056. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sansom-Daly UM, Wakefield CE. Distress and adjustment among adolescents and young adults with cancer: an empirical and conceptual review. Transl Pediatr. 2013;2(4):167–197. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Smith AW, Bellizzi KM, Keegan TH, et al. Health-related quality of life of adolescent and young adult patients with cancer in the United States: the adolescent and young adult health outcomes and patient experience study. J Clin Oncol. 2013;31(17):2136–2145. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2012.47.3173. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Salsman JM, Garcia SF, Yanez B, et al. Physical, emotional, and social health differences between posttreatment young adults with cancer and matched healthy controls. Cancer. 2014;120(15):2247–2254. doi: 10.1002/cncr.28739. - DOI - PMC - PubMed