The Value of Clinical Screening for Malnutrition and Its Impact on Quality of Life in Head and Neck Cancer.

Purpose: Individuals with head and neck cancer (HNCa) are at an increased risk of malnutrition. Despite this risk, changes in nutritional status may not be reported or detected. Therefore, the use of self-administered, outpatient nutrition screening tools that seek information specific to posttreatment nutritional concerns may yield benefits of identifying a need for intervention, which may facilitate improved treatment outcomes and quality of life (QOL). The present study evaluated the accuracy and reliability of nutritional screening in HNCa and explored the potential relationship between nutrition status and QOL assessments in this patient population. Method: In this descriptive, cohort case series conducted at a tertiary care center, 50 participants (36 men, 14 women) completed one demographic and two QOL surveys, a nutrition assessment, two nutrition self-screening tools, and an ease-of-use questionnaire. Results obtained from nutrition screens were compared to those of the nutrition assessment. Additionally, the relationships between QOL, nutrition status, and demographics were examined. Results: Thirty-two percent of participants were identified as nutritionally compromised. In this patient population, the sensitivity and specificity for the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment Short Form and Pt-Global Application were found to be 81.25% and 100%, and 68.76% and 100%, respectively. Additionally, alterations in nutrition status were associated with QOL. Conclusion: Data suggest that self-administered nutrition screening protocols may be a viable option, which enable proactive identification of outpatient nutritional concerns associated with HNCa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]