Associations of Age and Sex with the Efficacy of Inpatient Cancer Rehabilitation: Results from a Longitudinal Observational Study Using Electronic Patient-Reported Outcomes

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Cancer rehabilitation should restore patients’ quality of life (QOL), which is impaired by symptoms and treatment side effects. Here we investigate to which extent different age groups, frail patients, and men and women benefit from rehabilitation. To do this, reports given from patients themselves are used. We find that elderly patients suffer from a higher symptom burden and a lower QOL than younger individuals. Anxiety is more common among younger patients and women, while older patients tend to be more depressive. Regardless of age, sex and frailty, rehabilitation improves the QOL in these patient groups, and reduces distress and somatic symptoms. ABSTRACT: Cancer rehabilitation is thought to increase the quality of life (QOL) and functioning of cancer survivors. It remains, however, uncertain whether subgroups benefit equally from rehabilitation. We wished to investigate the outcomes of multimodal rehabilitation according to age, sex and functioning. Patients of an Austrian rehabilitation center routinely completed the EORTC QLQ-C30 and the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) questionnaires prior to (T1), and after rehabilitation (T2). To compare the outcomes between age groups (i.e., <40, 41–69, and ≥70 years), sex, and the Norton scale risk status, repeated measures of analyses of variance were calculated. A total of 5567 patients with an average age of 60.7 years were included, of which 62.7% were female. With T1 indicating the cancer survivors’ needs, older and high-risk patients reported lower functioning (all p < 0.001) and a higher symptom burden for most scales (all p < 0.05) before rehabilitation. Regardless of age, sex or risk status, the patients showed at a least small to medium improvement during rehabilitation for anxiety, depression, and most functioning and symptom scales. Some between-group differences were observed, none of which being of a relevant effect size as determined with the Cohen’s d. In conclusion, QOL is improved by rehabilitation in all patients groups, independently from age, sex, or the risk status.