Symptom Clusters in Women with Gynecologic Cancer

부인암 여성의 증상 클러스터(Symptom Cluster)

Purpose: Women with gynecologic cancer often experience various physical and psychological symptoms relating to the cancer and its treatment. The purpose of this study was to identify symptom clusters. Method: A survey was conducted on 184 women with diagnoses of cervical, ovarian or endometrial cancer. Fifty symptoms were assessed for prevalence, severity and interference, and symptom clusters were identified. Cluster analysis was done using SPSS version 12.0. Results: Fatigue was identified as the most prevalent symptom (81.52%), lack of vaginal lubrication (2.26) as the most severe symptom, and lack of vaginal lubrication as the most interfering one (2.15). Identified six clusters were: Anorexia-pain cluster (loss of appetite, taste change, weight loss, appearance change, alopecia, weakness, pain), Fatigue cluster (lack of concentration, lack of memory, fatigue, dry mouth), Urinary-bowel distress cluster (urinary difficulty, constipation), Abdominal discomfort cluster (lower abdominal pain, abdominal pain, bloating), Emotional distress (sadness, anxiety-worry, nervousness, restlessness), and Menopausal cluster (sweating, hot flush, fever). Conclusion: The result of this study provides fundamental data to health care professionals in developing interventions for effective symptom management for women with gynecologic cancer by understanding identified 6 symptom clusters.