About 80% of Female Colorectal Cancer Survivors May Experience Gastrointestinal Symptoms – Health and Medicine

2023-08-09 07:48:28

The location of the cancer in the colon and rectum, as well as treatment-related effects on the gut microbiome could be contributing factors to these types of symptoms for which comprehensive interventions are required.

While depression, anxiety, and fatigue are commonly managed after cancer diagnosis and treatment, many colorectal cancer survivors also report experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms without finding relief.

It happens, above all, in women survivors of colorectal cancer. Nearly 80% may experience a variety of gastrointestinal symptoms long after being diagnosed and treated for their tumors, according to a recent study published by Han et al in ‘Plos One’.

“Many cancer treatments show great success and many cancer survivors are living longer than everexplained the study’s lead author, Claire Han, Assistant Professor of Nursing at The Ohio State University. “Gastrointestinal symptoms among survivors have received little research in the past, but we found that they are very common even up to 25 years after diagnosis, suggesting that it is very important to consider managing GI symptoms as part of your survivorship care. ”he emphasized.

For the new study, the researchers used data from the Women’s Health Initiative Post-Cancer Life and Longevity Study to analyze the results of 413 geriatric female colorectal cancer survivors, all postmenopausal, with a median age of 71 years and a average age 63 years. years to diagnosis. Among the selected patients, 63.2% had undergone surgery for their colorectal cancer and 34.4% had received multiple treatments, including surgery and chemoradiotherapy.

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The study authors found that 81% of colorectal cancer survivors reported persistent gastrointestinal symptoms, predominantly bloating and gas. The median time from diagnosis was 8 years for all patients.

The researchers also showed that severe gastrointestinal symptoms were related to poor quality of life, interference with daily social and physical activities, and low satisfaction with body image. These symptoms were often accompanied by the psychological distress experienced by many cancer survivors. However, the researchers were unable to determine whether the gastrointestinal symptoms were causes or consequences of quality-of-life problems, particularly fatigue, sleep deficiencies, depression, and anxiety.

Patients who were within 5 years of diagnosis and had survived stage III cancer were also more likely to report persistent gastrointestinal symptoms. The severity of depression, anxiety, fatigue, and sleep deficiencies was higher in patients with GI symptoms than in patients without GI symptoms.

“Cancer survivors with high psychological symptoms may have a higher stress level that could inflame the gut and lead to these types of symptoms.”Han stressed.The causal direction could be bidirectional”he claimed.

The investigators also incorporated demographic data, gastrointestinal symptoms, non-GI symptoms, dietary habits, and physical activity, as well as how these measures affected quality of life. Bloating and gas were reported in 54.2% of cases (17.2% of which moderate to severe), followed by constipation in 44.1% (12.6% of which moderate to severe), diarrhea in 33.4% (10.4% of which were moderate to severe); and abdominal/pelvic pain in 28.6% (6.8% of which were moderate to severe). When all symptoms were combined into a composite score, 15.4% of colorectal cancer survivors reported moderate to severe general gastrointestinal symptoms.

Although they were unable to identify the mechanisms behind the symptoms, the researchers postulated that the location of the cancer in the colon and rectum, as well as treatment-related effects on the gut microbiome, could be contributing factors.

The new findings, according to the researchers, suggest the need for comprehensive interventions for colorectal cancer survivors, including psychosocial support, pain management, individualized nutritional counseling and physical rehabilitation. J.S.LL/ M.T.T. (SyM)