The effects of virgin coconut oil (VCO) as supplementation on quality of life (QOL) among breast cancer patients

Lipids in Health and Disease

Nik Hazlina Nik Hussain¹  Siti Amrah Sulaiman¹  Narazah Mohd Yusoff²  Muhammad Yusri Musa²  Eshaifol Azam Omar²  Nizuwan Azman²  Kim Sooi Law² 

[1] School of Medical Science, Health Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia;Institut Perubatan dan Pergigian Termaju, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Bertam, 13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

关键词: Chemotherapy;    Breast cancer patient;    Quality of life (QOL);    Virgin coconut oil (VCO);   

Others  :  1152252
DOI  :  10.1186/1476-511X-13-139

 received in 2014-04-08, accepted in 2014-08-23,  发布年份 2014

【 摘 要 】

Background

Breast cancer is the most common cancer amongst Malaysian women. Both the disease and its treatment can disrupt the lives of the woman and adversely affect all aspects of life and thus can alter a woman’s quality of life. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of virgin coconut oil (VCO) on the quality of life (QOL) of patients diagnosed with breast cancer.

Methods

This was a prospective study of breast cancer patients admitted into the Oncology Unit of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia. The sample consisted of 60 patients with stage III and IV breast cancer allocated to either an intervention group (n = 30) or a control group (n = 30) using a simple random table. QOL was evaluated from the first cycle of chemotherapy to the sixth cycle, and data were collected using a validated Bahasa Malaysia version of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Breast Cancer Module (EORTC QLQ-C30) and its breast-specific module (QLQ-BR 23).

Results

The mean age of breast cancer patients was 50.2 (SD = 13.5) years. There were significant mean score differences for functioning and global QOL between groups (α < 0.01). The intervention group also had better scores for symptoms including fatigue, dyspnea, sleep difficulties, and loss of appetite compared to the control group. Although there are deteriorations for sexual enjoyment, the intervention group exhibited improvement in breast functioning and symptom scores for body image, sexual function, future perspective, breast symptoms, and systemic therapy side effects.

Conclusion

VCO consumption during chemotherapy helped improve the functional status and global QOL of breast cancer patients. In addition, it reduced the symptoms related to side effects of chemotherapy.

【 授权许可】

   
2014 Law et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

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