Relationships among Malnutrition, Depression and Quality of Life in Patients with Gynecologic Cancer receiving Chemotherapy

Nho, Ju Hee; Kim, Sung Reul; Kang, Gyeong Seon; Kwon, Yong Soon

doi:2014.20.2.117

Korean J Women Health Nurs > Volume 20(2); 2014 > Article

Original Article

Korean Journal of Women Health Nursing 2014;20(2):117-125.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4069/kjwhn.2014.20.2.117 Published online June 30, 2014.

Relationships among Malnutrition, Depression and Quality of Life in Patients with Gynecologic Cancer receiving Chemotherapy

Ju Hee Nho, Sung Reul Kim, Gyeong Seon Kang, Yong Soon Kwon

¹Department of Nursing, University of Ulsan, Ulsan, Korea.
²College of Nursing, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju, Korea. srkim@jbnu.ac.kr
³Ulsan University Hospital, Ulsan, Korea.
⁴College of Medicine, University of Ulsan, Ulsan, Korea.
⁵Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ulsan University Hospital, Ulsan, Korea.

Abstract

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to identify nutritional status, and relationships among malnutrition, depression and quality of life in patients with gynecologic cancer who were receiving chemotherapy.
METHODS
For this study a descriptive cross-sectional design was used. Participants were 111 women who were enrolled and agreed to undergo a face-to-face interviews including administration of the structured questionnaires: Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire (SNAQ), and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G).
RESULTS
Mean body mass index was 23.3 and mean body weight was 56.5 kg. Sixty-three (57%) of the 111 patients were malnourished according to the PG-SGA. The malnourished patients showed higher levels of depression and lower quality of life compared to the non-malnourished patients. In addition, malnutrition was associated with BMI level, depression, appetite and quality of life.
CONCLUSION
The findings indicate that the prevalence of malnutrition is high and malnutrition in patients with gynecologic cancer influences depression and adversely affects the quality of life of these women. To improve the patient's quality of life, nutritional assessment and appropriate management is important to decrease malnutrition in patients with gynecologic cancer.

Key Words: Chemotherapy; Gynecologic neoplasm; Malnutrition; Depression; Quality of life