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Body mass index and self-care behaviors related to oral health–related quality of life in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma within three months posttreatment

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Abstract

Purpose

Oral dysfunction is a common adverse event of treatment and may affect oral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL). This study aimed to identify factors associated with OHRQoL in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) within the first three months posttreatment.

Methods

This cross-sectional study examined OSCC patients who received treatment from the outpatient radiation department of a single cancer center in northern Taiwan. Demographic and clinical characteristics were recorded, and patients were assessed using the Self-Care Behaviors Scale (SCB), Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP), and Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) questionnaires.

Results

Among 148 OSCC patients, 11.5% reported being underweight and 70.3% reported normal weight. The most common self-care factors associated with adverse effects were decreased appetite and fatigue. Psychological disability, functional limitation, and physical pain were the most negative OHRQoL factors. Poor OHRQoL was associated with more severe adverse effects after self-care behaviors, using feeding tubes during treatment, and having BMI less than 25, which together explained 33.5% of the variance in OHRQoL.

Conclusions

The severity of adverse effects after self-care behaviors and using feeding tubes during treatment strongly influenced overall OHRQoL and seven specific dimensions of OHRQoL.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the patients who participated in the study. The authors also thank Convergence CT for assistance with English editing.

Funding

Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), Grant/Award Numbers: MOST 105-2628-B-255-001-MY3.

Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Grant/Award Numbers: CMRPF1H0011, CMRPF1K0021, CMRPF3K0011, NMRPF3K0053, and NMRPF3J0181.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiation Oncology and Proton and Radiation Therapy Center, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan

    Bing-Shen Huang & Shu-Ching Chen

  2. Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan

    Bing-Shen Huang

  3. Department of Nursing, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan

    Ching-Fang Chung & Ya-Lan Chang

  4. Department of Nursing, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Da-Yeh University, Changhua, Taiwan

    Li-Yun Lee

  5. Department of Nursing, Oriental Institute of Technology, Taipei, Taiwan

    Hsi-Ling Peng

  6. School of Nursing and Geriatric and Long-Term Care Research Center, College of Nursing, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, 261, Wen-Hua 1st Road, Kweishan, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    Shu-Ching Chen

  7. School of Nursing, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan

    Shu-Ching Chen

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  1. Bing-Shen Huang
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  2. Ching-Fang Chung
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shu-Ching Chen.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the University of Wisconsin Health Sciences IRB (Number: 104-8655B) and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Huang, BS., Chung, CF., Chang, YL. et al. Body mass index and self-care behaviors related to oral health–related quality of life in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma within three months posttreatment. Support Care Cancer 29, 2239–2248 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-020-05737-x

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