Assessing oral and dental health-related quality of life in head and neck cancer patients at 1, 5, and 10 years: a comparison of the EORTC QLQ43, FACT H&N, and the Orthognathic-QLQ questionnaires
Purpose: Numerous health-related quality of life (HRQoL) questionnaires are available to assess oral HRQoL in patients undergoing treatment for head and neck (H&N) cancer. These multidimensional instruments should have the capacity to detect meaningful clinical oral function/dental changes a...
| Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Country: | España |
| Institution: | Universitat Pompeu Fabra |
| Repository: | Repositorio Digital de la UPF |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:dnet:rdupf_______::faca390c97279e7fe3c4549ac118a4f6 |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10230/73446 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12094-025-03895-0 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Dental care EORTC QLQ-H& N43 FACT H& N Head and neck cancer Health-related quality of life Orthognathic-QLQ Radiotherapy |
| Summary: | Purpose: Numerous health-related quality of life (HRQoL) questionnaires are available to assess oral HRQoL in patients undergoing treatment for head and neck (H&N) cancer. These multidimensional instruments should have the capacity to detect meaningful clinical oral function/dental changes at different time points. However, the optimal instrument-or combination of instruments-for assessing oral health and dental needs is not clear. We administered three questionnaires (FACT H&N, EORTC QLQ-H&N43, Orthognathic-QLQ) to assess oral and dental HRQoL in a cohort of H&N cancer patients at 1-, 5- and 10-year post-treatment. A secondary aim was to compare these questionnaires to determine which provides the most useful assessment of oral HRQoL and dental care needs. Methods: Prospective, single-center study of patients (n = 82) with H&N cancer grouped according to the follow-up time (1, 5, or 10 years). HRQoL was assessed by telephone with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT H&N), the European Organization for Research and Treatment (EORTC QLQ-H&N43), and the Orthognathic Questionnaire (OQLQ). Analyses were performed to assess differences between groups. Results: Eighty-two patients (fifty-nine men) were included. The mean age was 61.9 years. On the EORTC QLQ-H&N43, significant between-group differences (1 year vs. 5 and 10 years) were observed on five multi-item scales (mouth pain, senses, body image, anxiety, and shoulder problems) and on three single-item scales (neurological problems, neck swelling, and weight loss), indicating that QoL for those domains was more negatively impacted at 1-year post-treatment. Adjusted mean scores on most items on the EORTC QLQ-H&N43 were similar in the 5- and 10-year groups. On the other two scales (FACT H&N and OQLG), there were no significant between-group (1, 5, 10 years) differences in adjusted mean scores. Conclusion: These results show that the negative impact of H&N cancer on HRQoL is most evident at 1-year versus 5- or 10-year post-treatment. The combined administration of the EORTC QLQ-H&N43 and the OQLQ appear to provide the most useful assessment of HRQoL. |
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