Health-related Quality of Life of Men on Hormonal Therapy for Prostate Cancer

Abstract

Irrespective of the fact that prostate cancer is the most common cancer in South African men, little is known about the lives of men living with prostate cancer. This study aimed to describe the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of men treated with hormonal therapy for prostate cancer. A cross sectional design, calculated sample size and convenience sampling method were used to recruit 113 men (n=113) treated at a tertiary hospital in the Gauteng Province. The EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-PR25 questionnaires were used to collect the data. The data were analysed by means of descriptive statistics, and the Kruskall-Wallis H-test was used to compare the mean responses (p≤0.05). The ages of the sample (n=113) ranged from 52 to 96 years, with a mean of 68.8 years (SD±7.3). Overall health had the highest mean score (M=61; SD±19.1), compared to global health (M=60.5; SD±18.8), and HRQoL (M=60; SD±24.2). Social functioning was the domain that scored the lowest (M=72.6; SD±30.8), while hot flushes was the hormonal treatment-related symptom with the highest mean (M=46; SD±40.4). Hormonal therapy affected all the HRQoL domains of the men in our sample. However, the group 50 to 59 years of age and those in the first year of treatment had a better HRQoL compared to those 60 years and older and those in the second year of treatment. Nurses can enhance the HRQoL of these men through questioning, assessment and timely intervention.