Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA
Harry VanDusen , Lara Traeger , Joel Nathan Fishbein , Tanya Keenan , Joseph A. Greer , William F. Pirl , Vicki A. Jackson , Justin Eusebio , Emily R. Gallagher , Timothy A. Graubert , Jeffrey M. Peppercorn , Thomas R. Spitzer , Karen K. Ballen , Steven L. McAfee , Bimalangshu Dey , Yi-Bin Albert Chen , Jennifer S. Temel , Areej El-Jawahri
Background: Patients undergoinghematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) experience a steep deterioration in quality of life (QOL) and mood during hospitalization for HCT. The impact of this deterioration on patients’ long-term QOL and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms is unknown. Methods: We conducted a prospective longitudinal study of patients hospitalized for HCT. At baseline (day-6), day+1, day+8, and 6 months post-HCT, we assessed QOL (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Bone Marrow Transplantation [FACT-BMT]) and mood (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale [HADS]). We used the PTSD Checklist to assess for PTSD symptoms at 6 months. We used multivariable linear regression models to identify predictors of QOL and PTSD symptoms at 6 months post-HCT. Results: We enrolled 97% (90/93) of consecutively eligible patients undergoing autologous (n = 30), myeloablative allogeneic (n = 30), or reduced intensity allogeneic (n = 30) HCT. Overall, patients’ QOL at 6 months (mean FACT-BMT: 110, 95%CI [104-116]) recovered to baseline pre-transplant values (mean FACT-BMT: 110, 95% CI [107-115]). At 6 months, 28.4% of participants met provisional diagnostic criteria for PTSD. In multivariable regression analyses, depression and anxiety symptoms during hospitalization for HCT predicted impaired QOL (HADS-depression β = -1.8, P = 0.04; HADS-anxiety β = -1.7, P = 0.05) and PTSD symptoms (HADS-depression β = 1.0, p = 0.05; HADS-anxiety 1.2, P = 0.01) at 6 months post-HCT. Conclusions: While patients’ overall QOL at 6 months post-HCT returned to baseline values, a significant proportion met provisional diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Psychological distress during hospitalization for HCT was the most important predictor of long-term QOL impairment and PTSD symptoms. Future studies should evaluate whether interventions to reduce psychological distress during HCT may improve long-term QOL and reduce the risk of PTSD symptoms.
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Abstract Disclosures
2024 ASCO Annual Meeting
First Author: Areej El-Jawahri
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