D. A. Fedorenko¹, V. Y. Melnichenko¹, A. V. Zinkovskaya², T. P. Nikitina³, T. I. Ionova³

Quality of life in Hodgkin lymphoma patients before autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation influences treatment outcomes

¹ N.I. PIROGOV NATIONAL MEDICAL SURGICAL CENTER, MOSCOW
² Multinational Center for Quality of Life Research, Saint-Petersburg
³ N.I. Pirogov Clinic of High Medical Technologies N., Saint-Petersburg State University, Saint-Petersburg

The independent prognostic value of pre-transplant QoL was reported for different types of cancer. QoL assessment before AHSCT might be an informative tool for predicting treatment outcome in this patient population. A total of 79 Hodgkin lymphoma patients were enrolled in the study: mean age — 31 years old (range 19–50); male/female — 30/49. All the patients were treated by AHSCT. Before AHSCT 15 patients had complete remission; 46 — partial remission; 13 — stabilization; 5 — progression. Mean follow-up was 15 months. QoL was assessed using generic SF-36 questionnaire. One third of Hodgkin lymphoma patients exhibited severe or critical QoL impartment before AHSCT. The poor QoL, especially physical functioning and vitality, before AHSCT were significantly associated with mortality after AHSCT. Thus, pre-transplant QoL, especially the physical and social well-being of a patient, may add to the prognostic information that is provided by other risk factors for survival.