# Radiotherapy-Related Clinical and Functional Sequelae in Lung Cancer Survivors
## 3 Results
### Clinical and Functional Outcomes of This Study  
Differences in symptoms and physical activity performed before and after radiotherapy treatment are shown in Table 2. Regarding symptoms, significant differences were found in dyspnea (\(p\) = 0.001), cough (\(p\) = 0.002), and fatigue (\(p\) < 0.001). Patients showed worse fatigue in the different dimensions after radiotherapy treatment, with significant results in the behavioral (\(p\) < 0.001), cognitive (\(p\) < 0.001), sensory (\(p\) < 0.001), and total score (\(p\) < 0.001).  
Functional status assessed with the IPAQ showed significant differences for slight (\(p\) < 0.001), moderate (\(p\) < 0.001), vigorous (\(p\) < 0.001), and total physical activity performed. Patients also showed lower physical activity levels after radiotherapy treatment, with a  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l c c} \hline \hline  & **Variable** & **Values (\(n\) = 65)** \\ \hline Type & SCLC & 11 (16.9\%) \\  & NSCLC & 54 (83.1\%) \\  & I & 11 (16.9\%) \\ Stage & II & 8 (12.3\%) \\  & III & 46 (70.8\%) \\ Radiotherapy treatment & VMAT + IGRT & 38 (58.5\%) \\ Type & SBRT + IGRT & 15 (23.1\%) \\  & External & 12 (18.5\%) \\ Number of sessions & & 24.29 \(\pm\) 8.80 \\ Total radiation dose (G) & & 55.38 \(\pm\) 9.13 \\ Irradiated organ volume (cc) & & 456.58 \(\pm\) 200.57 \\ Adjuvant treatment & & \\ Surgery & & 14 (21.5\%) \\ Chemotherapy & & 52 (80\%) \\ Immunotherapy & & 9 (13.8\%) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Data expressed as n (%) or mean \(\pm\) SD. Abbreviations: y, years; BMI, Body Mass Index; NSCLC, non-small cell lung cancer; SCLC, small cell lung cancer; VMAT, volumetric intensity-modulated arc therapy; IGRT, image-guided radiation therapy; SBRT, stereotactic body radiation therapy; G, gray.  
\end{table}
Table 1: _Cont._  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l c c c} \hline \hline  & **Before Radiotherapy** & **After Radiotherapy** & **\(p\)-Value** \\  & **(\(n\) = 65)** & **(\(n\) = 61)** & **\(p\)-Value** \\ \hline Symptoms & & & \\ Dyspnea & 2.87 \(\pm\) 2.13 & 4.21 \(\pm\) 2.04 & 0.001 \({}^{*}\) \\ Cough & 3.25 \(\pm\) 4.16 & 5.62 \(\pm\) 4.11 & 0.002 \({}^{*}\) \\ Fatigue & & & \\ Behavioral & 1.92 \(\pm\) 1.29 & 3.26 \(\pm\) 1.63 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Affective & 5.13 \(\pm\) 3.01 & 5.02 \(\pm\) 2.14 & 0.810 \\ Cognitive & 1.88 \(\pm\) 1.67 & 5.65 \(\pm\) 2.01 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Sensory & 3.32 \(\pm\) 2.00 & 4.81 \(\pm\) 1.08 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Total & 2.89 \(\pm\) 1.08 & 4.68 \(\pm\) 0.82 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Physical activity & & & \\ Walking & 918.56 \(\pm\) 327.59 & 563.76 \(\pm\) 551.71 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Moderate & 1077.70 \(\pm\) 348.94 & 204.64 \(\pm\) 375.56 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Vigorous & 1095.58 \(\pm\) 491.69 & 78.94 \(\pm\) 76.47 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Total & 3091.84 \(\pm\) 737.61 & 847.33 \(\pm\) 727.97 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Minutes of sitting time & 357.42 \(\pm\) 145.68 & 447.73 \(\pm\) 152.51 & 0.001 \({}^{*}\) \\ Barriers to perform P.A. & 18.48 \(\pm\) 5.67 & 25.43 \(\pm\) 4.69 & 0.000 \({}^{**}\) \\ Muscle mass & & & \\ RFCSA & 1.16 \(\pm\) 0.29 & 1.00 \(\pm\) 0.28 & 0.002 \({}^{*}\) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Data expressed as mean \(\pm\) SD; \({}^{*}\)\(p\) < 0.05; \({}^{**}\)\(p\) < 0.001. Abbreviations: P.A., physical activity; RFCSA, rectus femoris cross-sectional area.  
\end{table}
Table 2: Symptoms, physical activity, and muscle mass of patients included in study before and after radiotherapy treatment.  
mean of 847.33 \(\pm\) 727.97 METs (\(p\) < 0.001). In addition, a significant increase was observed in the sedentary habits of these patients, with 447.73 min of sitting per day (\(p\) = 0.001). They also reported a significant increase in perceived barriers to perform physical activity (\(p\) < 0.001). The decrease observed in muscle section area indicated significant muscle weakening (\(p\) = 0.002) when the RFCSA before radiotherapy (1.16 \(\pm\) 0.29) was compared to the RFCSA after radiotherapy (1.00 \(\pm\) 0.28).