Assessment of bone health-related quality of life in postmenopausal women with non-metastatic breast cancer receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Cytotoxic chemotherapy adversely affects bone health resulting in poor quality of life (QoL). This study aimed to validate and evaluate the effects of chemotherapy on bone health-specific QoL among postmenopausal women with early and locally advanced breast cancer. METHODS: One hundred and nine newly diagnosed postmenopausal women with non-metastatic breast cancer aged 45 to 65 years planned for anthracycline and taxane-based chemotherapy were recruited prospectively during the study period (June 2018- December 2021). Bone health-specific QoL using QUALEFFO-31 consisting of three domains: pain, physical function, and mental function, were assessed at baseline, after chemotherapy and six months of follow-up. RESULTS: The median age of the study group was 53(45-65) years. Early and locally advanced breast cancer represented 34(31.2%) and 75(68.8%), respectively. A significant worsening of the quality of life was seen at the end of chemotherapy compared to the baseline in the total scores (19.98 ± 8.34 vs. 28.98 ± 7.92 P < 0.001), pain (11.31 ± 11.58 vs. 26.70 ± 15.75 P < 0.001), physical (14.01 ± 9.19 vs. 20.47 ± 10.08, P < 0.001) and mental function (36.10 ± 11.07 vs. 46.37 ± 7.84, P < 0.001). In the subset analysis, the total scores of bone-specific QoL continue to be poor at 6 months of follow-up post-chemotherapy (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Our study suggests worsening bone health-related QoL in breast cancer women on chemotherapy and this effect continues to be persistent at six months of follow-up.