This research was performed to determine the symptoms of the patients with head and neck cancers receiving radiotherapy.
This research was performed with 47 patients applying to the departments of Radiation Oncology in both Samsun Education and Research Hospital and Ondokuz Mayıs University Hospital. The data in the research were collected via Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS) and personal data form based on literature during the middle of the radiation therapy, when the therapy ended and in the period after 1 month passed over the end of the therapy. In the evaluation of the data, percentile calculation, mean, Mann Whitney U Test and Bonferroni Adjusted Kruskal Wallis H Test were utilized.
At the end of the therapy with head and neck cancer, the avarage of MSAS-GDI (Global Distres Indeks), MSAS-physical, MSAS-psychological and Total Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (TMSAS) were found to higher and after 1 month passed over the end of the therapy, the average of MSAS subscale reduced. There seems a meaningful statistical difference between the subscale groups, in the middle, at the end and 1 month after the end of the therapy (p<0.05). The scores of MSAS subscale were checked against sex, education level, the phase of the sickness and the area that the cancer cells located. There found a meaningful statistical difference between the avarages of sex and MSAS-psychological score at the end of the radiotherapy (p<0.05). It was determined that the avarage of MSAS-psychological scores at the end of the radiotherapy were meaningfully higher on the women than the men. There also found a meaningful statistical difference between the avarages of TMSAS of the area that the cancer cells were located,during the middle of radiotherapy and at the end of the therapy (p<0.05). Determining symptoms during radiotherapy will contribute to increase the well-being of the patients.