Quality of life and preferences for treatment following systemic adjuvant therapy for early-stage breast cancer.

PURPOSETo evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of breast cancer patients who survived 2 to 5 years following initiation of adjuvant cytotoxic and/or hormonal therapy and to characterize relationships between QOL and patient physical symptoms, sexual function, and preferences regarding adjuvant treatment.PATIENTS AND METHODSEighty-six patients who had completed systemic adjuvant therapy for early-stage breast cancer between 1988 and 1991 were surveyed by written questionnaire and telephone interview. Sociodemographic information was obtained for each patient, and patients were asked to complete the Functional Living Index-Cancer (FLIC), the Symptom Distress Scale (SDS), the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) Short Form 36 (SF-36), a series of questions regarding sexual function, and a survey about preferences for adjuvant therapy in relation to possible benefit.RESULTSThe mean FLIC score among all patients was 138.3 (+/- 12.2), which suggests a high level of QOL. The reported frequency of moderate to severe sympto...