Comparing Symptom Burden in Patients with Metastatic and Nonmetastatic Cancer

Symptoms of patients with advanced cancer have been extensively studied, but less attention has been paid to the symptomatology of patients with localized disease. We compared the symptom burden of outpatients with cancer, either metastatic or localized disease, seen in a palliative care comanagement clinic.

We conducted a retrospective, cross-sectional study assessing patient symptoms with multiple patient surveys, including a modified Edmonton Symptom Assessment Survey (to assess pain, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and nausea), along with a spiritual well-being screen and questions about relationships and quality of life. Consecutive patients at a comprehensive cancer center completed the surveys prior to their first visit to an outpatient palliative care clinic providing palliative care concurrently with the patients' oncologic treatments. Patients were referred by their oncologist, radiation oncologist, oncologic surgeon, or primary care physician without respect to their stage or prognosis. Statistical analyses used were χ(2), Fisher's exact test, Student's t test, and multivariate linear regression. Significance was taken as p<0.05.

Two hundred and five patients were included in this study. One hundred and twenty-seven patients (62%) had metastatic cancer and 78 (38%) had nonmetastatic cancer. The characteristics of the two study groups were similar with regard to age, sex, ethnicity, language, religion, partnership status, and insurance status. Patients with metastatic disease and localized disease had similar mean symptom burden and mean individual symptom intensity for all symptoms evaluated except for nausea, which was worse in patients with metastatic disease (3.4 versus 2.5, p=0.0028). Nausea was also worse in younger patients.

Among patients referred to a cancer center outpatient palliative care clinic, symptom burden is similar in patients with localized and metastatic disease. Even patients with relatively good prognoses may nevertheless have significant symptom burdens in physical, emotional, and existential domains. The palliative care needs of all patients must be assessed, regardless of stage or prognosis.