The Attentional Function, Fatigue and Quality of Sleep in Patients with Breast Cancer During Chemotherapy Period

• Main Authors: Chia Chan Wu, 吳佳蓁
• Other Authors: M. L. Chen
• Format: Others
• Published: 2008
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/kxsme5

碩士 === 長庚大學 === 護理學研究所 === 96 === Abstract The purpose of this study was （1）to explore the longitudinal change and of attentional function, fatigue and quality of sleep in patients with breast cancer during chemotherapy period；（2）to examine the relationship between fatigue and sleep qualities. A total of 121 patients with breast cancer were recruited. Each patient was elevated for attentional function, fatigue and quality of sleep at pre-chemotherapy and at every one month during six months of chemotherapy. Menopausal Symptom Questionnaire, Attentional Function Index (AFI), Lee Fatigue Scale (LFS) and General Sleep Disturbance Scale (GSDS) were used to measure the study variables. Data were analyzed using hierarchical linear model. Results indicated that: the attentional function and fatigue at the beginning of chemotherapy were worse than that before surgery, but gradually improved through out the chemotherapy. The sleep condition at the beginning of chemotherapy was worse than that before surgery and has reached the criteria level for sleep disturbance, but improved gradually through out the chemotherapy. Worse attentional function, fatigue, or sleep problem at the beginning of chemotherapy were associated with younger age, married, living with spouse, unemployed, premenopause and worse physical performance. In addition, menopausal status and religion belief had influence on the change pattern of fatigue and sleep problem over time. Postmenopausal patients reported slight increase in fatigue over time, however premenopausal patients reported significant decrease in fatigue over time. Patients who had religious belief reported gradual improvement in sleep disturbance over time, while patients who had no religious belief reported sharp improvement in sleep disturbance over time. At each time point, during chemotherapy period, patients with higher symptom distress reported poorer attentional function, higher levels of fatigue and sleep disturbance. Finally, higher fatigue was correlated with higher sleep disturbance, however the causal relationship between fatigue and sleep problem still need to be further investigated. Keywords: breast cancer, chemotherapy, attentional function, fatigue, quality of sleep, Hierarchical linear Model（HLM）