View article

Background:

Symptom distress remains a significant health problem among older adults with cancer following surgery. Understanding factors influencing older adults’ symptom distress may lead to early identification and interventions, decreasing morbidity and improving outcomes.

Objective:

We conducted this study to identify factors associated with symptom distress following surgery among 326 community-residing patients 65 years or older with a diagnosis of thoracic, digestive, gynecologic, and genitourinary cancers.

Methods:

This secondary analysis used combined subsets of data from 5 nurse-directed intervention clinical trials targeting patients after surgery at academic cancer centers in northwest and northeastern United States. Symptom distress was assessed by the Symptom Distress Scale at baseline and at 3 and 6 months.

Results:

A multivariable analysis, using generalized estimating equations, showed …