This syndrome includes fatigue, fever, chills, myalgias, headache, and malaise. Many people with cancer undergo surgery for diagnosis or treatment. Despite the high incidence of postoperative fatigue observed in clinical practice, little research exists that examines causes and correlates of postoperative fatigue in people with cancer. Anemia can be related to the disease itself, or due to therapy. Occasionally, anemia is simply a co- occurring medical finding that is neither related to the disease nor the therapy.
Anemia is often a significant contributor to symptoms in persons with cancer.
For individual patients, it can be difficult to discern the actual impact of anemia, for there are often other problems that confound the ability to weigh the specific impact of anemia. The impact of anemia varies depending on factors such as the rapidity of onset, patient age, plasma volume status, and the number and severity of comorbidities. Numerous factors related to the moods, beliefs, attitudes, and reactions to stressors of people with cancer are thought to contribute to the development of chronic fatigue. The presence of depression, as manifested by loss of interest, difficulty concentrating, lethargy, and feelings of hopelessness can compound the physical causes for fatigue in these individuals and persist long past the time when physical causes have resolved. Anxiety and fear associated with a cancer diagnosis as well as its impact on the person's physical, psychosocial, and financial well-being are sources of emotional stress.