Determinants of quality of life in patients following pulmonary resection for lung cancer

Background The purpose of the present study was to prospectively measure quality of life (QOL) before and after pulmonary resection for non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to determine which clinical perioperative variables predicted QOL. Methods Thirty-seven patients undergoing a curative resection for early-stage NSCLC were administered the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Lung (FACT-L) questionnaire serially. This was used to calculate a Trial Outcome Index (TOI), a measure of QOL. Results Perioperative variables associated with worse postoperative TOI included the presence of preoperative dyspnea (coefficient −7.89, 95% confidence interval −12.4 to −3.31, P = .01) and exposure to adjuvant chemotherapy (−14.7, −20.0 to −9.46, P = .001). Conclusions Preoperative dyspnea and postoperative chemotherapy are associated with worse postoperative QOL among patients with resected, early-stage NSCLC. As adjuvant and neoadjuvant therapy protocols become more prevalent for these patients, QOL issues may assume greater importance.