Prevalence and predictors of fatigue in glioblastoma: a prospective study

The main goal of this study was to assess frequency, clinical correlates, and independent predictors of fatigue in a homogeneous cohort of well-defined glioblastoma patients at baseline prior to combined radio-chemotherapy. We prospectively included 65 glioblastoma patients at postsurgical baseline...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuro-oncology (Charlottesville, Va.) Va.), 2015-02, Vol.17 (2), p.274-281
Main Authors: Valko, Philipp O, Siddique, Asim, Linsenmeier, Claudia, Zaugg, Kathrin, Held, Ulrike, Hofer, Silvia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Brain Neoplasms - complications
Brain Neoplasms - surgery
Clinical Investigations
Fatigue - diagnosis
Fatigue - epidemiology
Fatigue - etiology
Female
Glioblastoma - complications
Glioblastoma - surgery
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Middle Aged
Postoperative Period
Prevalence
Prospective Studies
Severity of Illness Index
Sleep Stages
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Summary:The main goal of this study was to assess frequency, clinical correlates, and independent predictors of fatigue in a homogeneous cohort of well-defined glioblastoma patients at baseline prior to combined radio-chemotherapy. We prospectively included 65 glioblastoma patients at postsurgical baseline and assessed fatigue, sleepiness, mean bedtimes, mood disturbances, and clinical characteristics such as clinical performance status, presenting symptomatology, details on neurosurgical procedure, and tumor location and diameter as well as pharmacological treatment including antiepileptic drugs, antidepressants, and use of corticosteroids. Data on fatigue and sleepiness were measured with the Fatigue Severity Scale and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, respectively, and compared with 130 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. We observed a significant correlation between fatigue and sleepiness scores in both patients (r = 0.26; P = .04) and controls (r = 0.36; P < .001). Only fatigue appeared to be more common in glioblastoma patients than in healthy controls (48% vs 11%; P < .001) but not the frequency of sleepiness (22% vs 19%; P = .43). Female sex was associated with increased fatigue frequency among glioblastoma patients but not among control participants. Multiple linear regression analyses identified depression, left-sided tumor location, and female sex as strongest associates of baseline fatigue severity. Our findings indicate that glioblastoma patients are frequently affected by fatigue at baseline, suggesting that factors other than those related to radio- or chemotherapy have significant impact, particularly depression and tumor localization.
ISSN:1522-8517
1523-5866
DOI:10.1093/neuonc/nou127