Radiotherapy Symptoms in Head and Neck Cancer Patients in Northeast Brazil

Author Info

Aracely Santos Horta Isis Valéria Lima de Oliveira Gabriele Souza de Oliveira Luana Mota de Jesus Monna Lisa Nascimento Wine de Oliveira Priscila Feliciano de Oliveira Vanessa Souza Gois

Corresponding Author

Priscila Feliciano de Oliveira
Federal University of Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil

A B S T R A C T

Objective: To describe the symptoms of radiotherapy in head and neck cancer patients and the time of initial onset of those. Material and Methods: All ethical precepts were followed, and the present study was approved by CEP number 92772318.8.0000.5546. The data collection in 41 head and neck cancer patients were performed by applying a questionnaire adapted by the researchers based on the EORTC QLQ-H & N35 protocol. The questionnaire consisted of 19 closed questions focusing on the adverse effects ofradiotherapy. Results: Most participants were male, with laryngeal cancer being the one with the highest incidence. Among the deleterious symptoms, the ones with more occurrence were weight loss, xerostomia, dysphagia and use of catheters. They appeared at the beginning of treatment, between the 6th and 10th session of radiotherapy. Symptoms such as social/family difficulties and oral communication had been present since the beginning of the treatment, extending to those who had completed the therapeutic procedure. Conclusion: Adverse symptoms are common in patients undergoing radiotherapy treatment for head and neck cancer, and mostly include aspects related to the eating process with involvement at the beginning of the treatment.

Article Info

Article Type

Research Article

Publication history

Received: Tue 10, Dec 2019
Accepted: Tue 31, Dec 2019
Published: Sun 05, Jan 2020

Copyright

© 2023 Priscila Feliciano de Oliveira. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Hosting by Science Repository.
DOI: 10.31487/j.COR.2019.06.17