Factors associated with sleep disturbances in women undergoing treatment for early-stage breast cancer

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with sleep disturbance in women receiving adjuvant therapy for breast cancer. Methods This study employed a cross-sectional design using data collected at 3 months post-surgery from an ongoing longitudinal parent study. Participant data were divided into adjuvant treatment groups (chemotherapy, radiation, and aromatase inhibitors) and no adjuvant treatment groups. Symptoms were measured using patient self-report measures. Analysis of variance was used to assess between adjuvant treatment group differences in sleep disturbance. Regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between sleep disturbance and other symptoms within adjuvant treatment groups. Results The sample included 156 women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. There were significant differences in levels of reported sleep disturbance between treatment groups (p = 0.049), with significantly higher levels of sleep disturbances in those receiving radiation compared to those receiving no adjuvant treatment (p = 0.038) and in those receiving chemotherapy and those receiving no adjuvant treatment (p = 0.027). Increased sleep disturbance was found to be a significant predictor for increased pain severity, nausea severity, anxiety, depressive symptoms, fatigue, decreased physical function, and decreased ability to participate in social roles and activities. Co-occurring symptoms with sleep disturbance differed between adjuvant treatment groups. Sleep disturbance was also associated with younger age (p = 0.008). Conclusions Patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiation for breast cancer report higher levels of sleep disturbance than those not receiving adjuvant therapy. Sleep disturbance is associated with other symptoms experienced by patients with cancer and thus requires continual assessment and future research into effective interventions.