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. 2017 Sep;6(3):489-493.
doi: 10.1089/jayao.2017.0037. Epub 2017 Jul 17.

Cancer-Related Fatigue in Adolescents and Young Adults After Cancer Treatment: Persistent and Poorly Managed

Anna Spathis  1   2 , Helen Hatcher  1 , Sara Booth  2 , Faith Gibson  3   4 , Paddy Stone  5 , Laura Abbas  1 , Matt Barclay  2 , James Brimicombe  2 , Pia Thiemann  2 , Martin G McCabe  6 , Rachel Campsey  7 , Louise Hooker  8 , Wendy Moss  1 , Jane Robson  1 , Stephen Barclay  2
Affiliations

Cancer-Related Fatigue in Adolescents and Young Adults After Cancer Treatment: Persistent and Poorly Managed

Anna Spathis et al. J Adolesc Young Adult Oncol. 2017 Sep.

Abstract

Cancer-related fatigue is the most prevalent and distressing symptom experienced by adolescents and young adults (AYAs). An electronic survey was undertaken to ascertain current fatigue management and perceptions of its effectiveness. Eighty-five percent of responders (68/80) experienced fatigue, and it was worse more than 1 year after cancer treatment ended, compared to <1 year (p = 0.007). Forty-one percent received no fatigue management. Although advice to exercise was the most frequent intervention, the greatest impact of fatigue was on the ability to exercise and most did not find exercise advice helpful. Early intervention is warranted, supporting AYAs to persevere with increasing activity.

Keywords: fatigue; late effects; quality of life; symptom control.

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Conflict of interest statement

No competing financial interests exist.

Figures

<b>FIG. 1.</b>
FIG. 1.
Symptom prevalence bar chart.
<b>FIG. 2.</b>
FIG. 2.
Stacked bar chart showing successfulness of each fatigue treatment.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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