Adjuvant endocrine therapy side-effects among postmenopausal breast cancer patients in Malaysia.

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and severity of menopausal symptoms and their associated risk factors among postmenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant endocrine therapy.

METHODS: Postmenopausal breast cancer patients on endocrine therapy were recruited at three hospitals in Malaysia. Presence and severity of menopausal symptoms were determined using the Menopause Rating Scale. Sociodemographic and clinical data were collected from medical records.

RESULTS: A total of 192 patients participated in this study. Commonly reported symptoms were musculoskeletal pain (59.9%), physical and mental exhaustion (59.4%), and hot flushes (41.1%). Multivariate analyses indicated that increasing number of years after menopause until the start of endocrine therapy was significantly associated with less likelihood of reporting menopausal symptoms and musculoskeletal pain. Patients with primary or secondary education levels reported significantly less menopausal urogenital symptoms compared to patients with a tertiary education level. Patients using aromatase inhibitors were twice as likely to experience musculoskeletal pain compared to patients using tamoxifen (odds ratio, 2.18; 95% confidence interval, 1.06-4.50; p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Menopausal symptoms and musculoskeletal pain are common problems encountered by postmenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant endocrine therapy and should be closely monitored for successful treatment.