Fatigue in patients with lung cancer is related with accelerated tryptophan breakdown.

Autor: Katharina Kurz, Michael Fiegl, Bernhard Holzner, Johannes Giesinger, Marianna Pircher, Guenter Weiss, Hubert A Denz, Dietmar Fuchs
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2012
Předmět:
Zdroj: PLoS ONE, Vol 7, Iss 5, p e36956 (2012)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1932-6203
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0036956
Popis: BACKGROUND: Patients with cancer often suffer from fatigue and decreased quality of life which might be related to the breakdown of essential amino acid tryptophan. METHODS: In 50 patients with lung cancer we examined fatigue and the deterioration of quality of life in patients using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy Anemia (FACT-An) and -Fatigue (FACT-F) subscales of FACT-General and the Mental adjustment to Cancer (MAC) questionnaires. Results were compared with tryptophan breakdown as well as serum concentrations of immune activation markers. RESULTS: Scores of psychological tests correlated significantly with tryptophan breakdown and with circulatory markers of inflammation. However, immune activation and tryptophan breakdown were not related to MAC scores. CONCLUSIONS: Tryptophan breakdown relates with fatigue and impaired quality of life in patients with lung cancer, while declining tryptophan levels are not associated with patients'coping strategies.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals