Functional and cognitive impairment , depressive symptoms and social isolation are highly prevalent in head and neck cancer patients and associate with high risk of adverse health outcomes .
OBJECTIVES Older head and neck cancer patients are at increased risk for adverse health outcomes , but little is known about which geriatric assessment associates with poor outcome .
The aim is to study the association of functional or cognitive impairment , social environment and frailty with adverse health outcomes in patients with head and neck cancer .
Influence of pretreatment social support on health-related quality of life in head and neck cancer survivors: results from a prospective study.
BACKGROUND Head and neck cancer and its treatment can have considerable impact on health-related quality of life ( HRQOL ) . The present study investigated whether social support , assessed before treatment , predicted HRQOL outcomes up to 12 months later in head and neck cancer survivors . METHODS Using a prospect i ve longitudinal design , patients ( n = 364 ) were assessed on several clinical and psychosocial characteristics at diagnosis and then at 3- and 12-month follow-up appointments . HRQOL was assessed with the Short Form Health Survey ( SF-36 ) and the Head and Neck Cancer Inventory ( HNCI ) .  RESULTS Hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that greater perceived support present at diagnosis significantly predicted more favorable global and head and neck cancer-specific HRQOL at 3- and 12-month follow-up . CONCLUSION Results suggest that adequate social support at diagnosis can have a significant , positive impact on HRQOL in head and neck cancer survivors . Thus , it may be useful to evaluate support re sources at diagnosis in order to identify individuals at risk for poor HRQOL outcomes
Functional and cognitive impairment , depressive symptoms and social isolation are highly prevalent in head and neck cancer patients and associate with high risk of adverse health outcomes .
OBJECTIVES Older head and neck cancer patients are at increased risk for adverse health outcomes , but little is known about which geriatric assessment associates with poor outcome .
The aim is to study the association of functional or cognitive impairment , social environment and frailty with adverse health outcomes in patients with head and neck cancer .