Quality of life after DCIS diagnosis doesn't decline

(HealthDay)—Quality of life (QoL) after a ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) diagnosis is generally comparable to that of similarly aged women without the diagnosis, according to a study published online Feb. 16 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Vicki Hart, Ph.D., from University of Vermont in Burlington, and colleagues assessed physical and mental measures of health-related QoL in 1,604 patients with DCIS diagnosed in 1997 to 2006 with up to four follow-up interviews. Baseline QoL was compared to 1,055 control patients without DCIS.

The researchers found that at less than two years after diagnosis both physical and mental measures of QoL among DCIS survivors were comparable to controls. At ≥10 years after diagnosis, mental measures of QoL among patients with DCIS declined and were significantly lower than at less than two years after diagnosis (P < 0.01). Mental QoL was significantly higher among women diagnosed at ages 50 to 74 years compared with those diagnosed at ages 28 to 49 years in the first five years after diagnosis, although this difference was not sustained.

"QoL after a DCIS diagnosis was generally comparable to that of women of similar age without a personal history of DCIS," the authors write. "Our findings suggest that DCIS survivors, and particularly those diagnosed at a younger age, may benefit from support for mental QoL."

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