Quality of Life Outcomes for Parotid Malignancies

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Head and Neck Surgery
• Oncology
• Patient-Reported Outcomes

Background:

• Malignant parotid tumors (MPT) require surgical intervention, often followed by adjuvant therapies.
• Assessing patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) is crucial for understanding the long-term impact of MPT treatment on quality of life.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in patients who underwent surgery for malignant parotid tumors (MPT).
• To identify clinical factors, including adjuvant therapies, associated with PROMs in MPT survivors.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of surgically treated MPT patients (2017-2023) within a head and neck cancer (HNC) survivorship clinic.
• Utilized validated PROMs: UW-QOL, EAT-10, PHQ-8, GAD-7, NDI, and Insomnia Severity Index.
• Multivariable regression analysis explored predictors of PROMs.

Main Results:

• Prevalence of clinically relevant dysphagia, depression, anxiety, neck pain, and insomnia was observed in 32.3%, 15.5%, 7.1%, 17.7%, and 7.2% of patients, respectively.
• Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and radiotherapy (RT) were significantly associated with worse physical quality of life (QOL), social-emotional QOL, and swallowing scores compared to surgery alone.
• Patients receiving CRT also reported worse neck pain compared to those receiving RT post-surgery.

Conclusions:

• Adjuvant CRT and RT following MPT surgery are associated with diminished patient-reported outcomes.
• These findings underscore the importance of considering the impact of adjuvant therapies on survivorship and quality of life in MPT patients.