Trajectory and predictors of cancer- and treatment-related fatigue (CRF) in adolescent and young adult cancer patients: a prospective, longitudinal study
Menée à partir de données portant sur 50 adolescents et jeunes adultes atteints d'un cancer et sur 105 témoins, cette étude identifie des facteurs associés à une fatigue liée à la maladie ou à ses traitements
Background: Although cancer- and treatment-related fatigue (CRF) is well recognized as a clinically important and distressing symptom among adolescent and young adult cancer (AYAC) patients, the understanding of the underlying mechanisms behind CRF in AYAC remains limited. We evaluated the trajectory and associated predictors of CRF among AYAC patients (Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03476070, registered 03/23/2018).
Methods: Newly diagnosed AYAC (15–39 years old) and non-cancer controls (NC) recruited from National Cancer Centre Singapore completed clinical assessments and provided blood draws for inflammatory cytokine measurements every 3 months up to 12 months. Mixed-effects models were used to evaluate significant factors associated with fatigue (MFSI-SF Total score), with AYAC stratified by chemotherapy status (active chemotherapy vs. >30 days post-chemotherapy).
Results: Fifty AYAC and 105 NC participants were included, with nearly 1 in 3 AYAC participants reported clinically important CRF at some point. Measurements collected during active chemotherapy had a higher rate of clinically important CRF symptoms relative to samples collected post-chemotherapy and from non-cancer controls. Regression analyses evaluating significant influencers of fatigue scores demonstrated that active chemotherapy, female sex, worsened psychological distress scores, and increased IL-10 levels were associated with worse self-reported fatigue symptoms (all p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Given the observed prevalence of clinically important CRF amongst AYAC within our study, our results further demonstrate that these patients are vulnerable to fatigue challenges. Identifying factors associated with these debilitating symptoms enables clinicians to better recognize at-risk patients and proactively address symptom burden.
BMC Cancer , article en libre accès, 2026