Comparison between Two Methods to Evaluate Function in Postoperative Breast Cancer Survivors

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Physical Therapy

Background:

• Breast cancer treatment can lead to adverse effects like pain and reduced upper limb function, impacting daily activities.
• The Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire is widely used but has limitations in coverage, potentially causing bias.
• Assessing upper limb function is crucial for breast cancer survivors' quality of life.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate differences in DASH scores before and after task-oriented training (TOT) in breast cancer survivors.
• To determine the correlation between pre- and post-TOT DASH assessments at 3 and 6 months post-surgery.

Main Methods:

• Prospective cohort study involving 22 women post-breast cancer surgery.
• Utilized the DASH questionnaire and task-oriented training (TOT) assessments.
• Employed Spearman's and Kendall's tau correlation tests to analyze DASH scores and items.

Main Results:

• A moderate to excellent correlation was observed between total DASH scores pre- and post-TOT at 3 and 6 months.
• Most individual DASH items showed poor correlation between pre- and post-TOT assessments.
• Bland-Altman plots indicated no agreement between total DASH scores pre- and post-TOT.

Conclusions:

• Both DASH and TOT are valuable tools for assessing upper limb function in clinical practice.
• Integrating TOT may mitigate memory bias and enhance skill estimation within DASH assessments.
• Further research may refine functional assessment tools for breast cancer survivors.