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Observational Study
. 2025 Apr 10;32(4):220.
doi: 10.3390/curroncol32040220.

The Role of Dysphagia on Head and Neck Cancer Patients' Quality of Life, Functional Disabilities and Psychological Distress: Outcomes of Cancer Rehabilitation from an Observational Single-Center Study

Špela Matko  1 , Christina Knauseder  2 , David Riedl  1   3 , Vincent Grote  1   4 , Michael J Fischer  1   5 , Samuel Moritz Vorbach  6 , Karin Pfaller-Frank  7 , Wilhelm Frank  7 , Thomas Licht  1   2
Affiliations
Observational Study

The Role of Dysphagia on Head and Neck Cancer Patients' Quality of Life, Functional Disabilities and Psychological Distress: Outcomes of Cancer Rehabilitation from an Observational Single-Center Study

Špela Matko et al. Curr Oncol. .

Abstract

Many patients with head-and-neck cancer (HNC) suffer from speech or swallowing disorders. We investigated the impact of dysphagia on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), functioning, and distress in HNC survivors, and whether cancer rehabilitation can alleviate these conditions. Before admission (T0) and at discharge (T1) of three-week inpatient cancer rehabilitation, patient-reported outcomes were collected. HRQOL, symptoms, functioning, and psychological distress were assessed with EORTC QLQ-C30 and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) questionnaires. Of 63 HNC patients, 22 had dysphagia, 23 needed no speech therapy (Control-1), and 18 needed speech therapy, but showed no symptoms of dysphagia (Control-2). Before rehabilitation, HRQOL, physical, social, and emotional functioning were significantly lower in dysphagia patients than in controls. Dysphagia patients reported more severe general symptoms including fatigue, pain, sleep disturbances, nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, and financial worries. Furthermore, the emotional and social functioning of Control-2 was significantly worse than Control-1. For all HNC patients, social, emotional, and role functioning, fatigue, nausea/vomiting, insomnia, and appetite loss significantly improved at T1. Improvements in HRQOL were most noticeable in dysphagia patients. Psychooncological counseling reduced depression in dysphagia and Control-2 patients to levels seen in the general population. In conclusion, dysphagia patients suffer severely from impaired functioning and systemic symptoms but benefit substantially from rehabilitation.

Keywords: cancer survivorship; depression; fatigue; patient-reported outcomes; psychooncology; speech therapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

T.L. served as the medical director of the Oncological Rehabilitation Centre St. Veit im Pongau, and C.K. was employed as a speech therapist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart data of patient selection. The box with the dotted line shows the overall patient sample in the rehabilitation center, and the boxes with solid lines show the eligible patients with head and neck (HNC) tumors.
Figure 2
Figure 2
HRQOL, Functioning Scales values after rehabilitation (T1) compared to general population normative data (grey color). The stars represent significant differences between the group and normative data: * p ≤ 0.05; ** p ≤ 0.01; *** p ≤ 0.001.
Figure 3
Figure 3
HRQOL Symptom Scales values after rehabilitation (T1) compared to general population normative data (grey color). The stars represent significant differences between the group and normative data: * p ≤ 0.05; ** p ≤ 0.01; *** p ≤ 0.001.
Figure 4
Figure 4
HADS mean values at admission (T0) and discharge (T1) compared to general population normative data (a–b). The stars represent significant differences between the group and normative data: * p ≤ 0.05; ** p ≤ 0.01; *** p ≤ 0.001.
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