Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41454361›Full record

ArticleBMC oral health2025

Oral health-related quality of life in head and neck cancer survivors in Egypt within the first year after radiotherapy: a multivariable analysis.

Fatma E A Hassanein, Asmaa Abou-Bakr, Hany William, Yousra Ahmed, Suzan S Ibrahim

Registry-linked trialAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC oral health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06901401 (Oral Health-Related Quality of Life Using EORTC QLQ-H&N35 in Head and Neck Cancer Survivors Within the First Year Following Treatment), which is not on this map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT06901401 active not recruitingnot on this map

Oral Health-Related Quality of Life Using EORTC QLQ-H&N35 in Head and Neck Cancer Survivors Within the First Year Following Treatment: a Cross-Sectional Study in Egypt

TypeobservationalSponsorAin Shams UniversityRan2024 to 2025Enrolled112ConditionsHead and Neck Cncer
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Trial
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  4. Article
  5. Observational
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  7. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Fatma E A HassaneinOral Medicine, Periodontology, and Oral Diagnosis, Faculty of Dentistry, King Salman International University, El-tor, Egypt. fatma.hassanein@ksiu.edu.eg.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0000-8010-9265
Asmaa Abou-BakrOral Medicine and Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Galala University, Suez, Egypt.
Hany WilliamDepartment of oncolog, Ahmed Maher Teaching Hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
Yousra AhmedProsthodontics Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, King Salman International University, El Tur, South Sinai, Egypt.
Suzan S IbrahimOral Medicine and Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundRadiotherapy for head and neck cancer (HNC) is frequently associated with debilitating oral complications that severely impact oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in cancer survivors. Although survivorship care is gaining more attention worldwide, there remains a scarcity of data on OHRQoL in low-resource countries. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate OHRQoL among Egyptian head-and-neck cancer survivors during the first year following treatment and identify sociodemographic and clinical predictors influencing symptom severity using the EORTC QLQ-H&N35 tool.

methodsThis cross-sectional study included 180 HNC survivors within 12 months post-treatment at Ahmed Maher Teaching Hospital, Cairo, Egypt. Participants completed the Arabic EORTC QLQ-H&N35 questionnaire, alongside structured interviews and clinical oral examinations (OHI-S and oral dryness scoring). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariate regression (GLM-MANOVA) to determine predictors of OHRQoL impairment.

resultsThe most severe patient-reported symptoms were dry mouth (mean 53.7 ± 16.6), limited mouth opening (45.4 ± 22.2), and dental-related problems (37.9 ± 18.6). Multivariable analysis identified tumor site and financial status as independent predictors of greater symptom burden, while tooth-brushing frequency showed a marginal association (p = 0.05). Patients with oral cavity tumors and those with lower socioeconomic status consistently reported poorer OHRQoL across multiple symptom domains.

conclusionsThis is the first study in Egypt using the EORTC QLQ-H&N35 tool to evaluate OHRQoL in HNC survivors in a comprehensive manner. One year after treatment, Egyptian HNC cancer survivors experience significant OHRQoL impairments, particularly associated with dry mouth, limited mouth opening, and dental pain. Tumor location, socioeconomic factors, and oral hygiene practices significantly influence symptom severity, highlighting the need for targeted supportive care interventions, including structured dental support and rehabilitation strategies tailored for at-risk patient populations in low-resource settings.

trial registrationThe study was registered retrospectively on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT06901401) on March 23, 2025.

Indexed as

Head and Neck NeoplasmsOral HealthQuality of LifeAdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesEgyptFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedMultivariate AnalysisSurveys and QuestionnairesSurvivorsEgyptEORTC QLQ-H&N35Head and neck cancerOral healthQuality of lifeRadiotherapy

Identifiers

PMID41454361
PMCPMC12853851

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.