Objective To investigate the current status of fear of disease progression and sleep quality among laryngeal cancer patients, and analyze the correlation between them. Methods Laryngeal cancer patients who were hospitalized in West China Hospital of Sichuan University between March 2021 and February 2022 were selected for this cross-sectional survey. Sociodemographic and disease-related data questionnaires, Chinese version of Fear of Progression Questionaire Short Form, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) Scale were used to investigate the laryngeal cancer patients who met the inclusion criteria, and the correlation between fear of disease progression and PSQI score in laryngeal cancer patients was analyzed by Spearman correlation analysis. Multiple linear stepwise regression analysis was used to analyze the effects of sociodemographic and disease-related characteristics on the total score of fear of disease progression in laryngeal cancer patients, and the effects of sociodemographic, disease-related characteristics and total score of fear of disease progression on the total score of PSQI of laryngeal cancer patients. Scores were expressed as median (lower quartile, upper quartile). Results A total of 312 copies of questionnaires were distributed and 309 valid copies were recovered, with an effective recovery rate of 99.0%. The total score of fear of disease progression in the laryngeal cancer patients was 22.00 (16.00, 30.00), including 12.00 (8.00, 17.00) in physiological health dimension, and 10.00 (7.00, 14.00) in social and family dimension. The total score of PSQI was 5.00 (3.00, 8.50). The correlations of the physiological health dimension score, the social and family dimension score, and the total score of fear of disease progression with the total score of PSQI in laryngeal cancer patients were positive with statistical significance (rs=0.294, P<0.001; rs=0.234, P<0.001; rs=0.287, P<0.001). Multiple linear stepwise regression analyses showed that the total score of fear of disease progression in laryngeal cancer patients was affected by the stage of disease, occupation, primary caregiver and treatment plan (P<0.05), and the total score of PSQI of laryngeal cancer patients was affected by level of education, treatment plan and the total score of fear of disease progression (P<0.05). Conclusions The fear of disease progression in laryngeal cancer patients has a significant negative correlation with the sleep quality. Meanwhile, alleviating the level of fear of disease progression may improve sleep quality.
ObjectiveTo explore the feasibility of reconstruction of phonatory function by using a tubular free flap from upper-lateral upper arm to repair the laryngotracheal circumferential defect after near-total laryngectomy for laryngeal cancer. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 7 patients who underwent near-total laryngectomy between June 2021 and October 2023, aged from 48 to 70 years (median, 59 years), 6 males and 1 female. The disease duration ranged from 1 to 11 months, with a median of 6 months. Pathological diagnosis of preoperative biopsy was squamous cell carcinoma. Tumor classification: glottic type in 5 cases, supraglottic type in 1 case, transglottic type in 1 case; TNM staging: T4N0M0 in 6 cases, T4N2M0 in 1 case; American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging in 2017 was stage Ⅳ. Preoperative MRI angiography of upper arm was performed to investigate the blood supply in the upper and lateral regions of the upper arm. After near-total laryngectomy and bilateral neck lymph node dissection, the area of the laryngotracheal defect was measured. A free flap measuring 7.0 cm×5.0 cm to 8.0 cm×7.0 cm was harvested from the upper-lateral upper arm, rolled into a tube shape, and connected between the stump of the cervical trachea in the neck root and that of the epiglottis at the tongue base. Four patients received adjuvant radiochemotherapy, 1 patient received radiochemotherapy and targeted therapy, 2 patients adopted no further adjuvant treatment. Results All 7 patients were followed-up 1-2 years (mean, 1 year and 3 months). Four patients had primary wound healing, 2 patients had minor pharyngeal fistulas that healed after dressing change, 1 patient experienced pharyngeal fistula because of flap necrosis and the wound still healed without secondary surgery. All patients took food orally within 1 month after operation, and the tracheal cannula was retained. Six patients with survived flap gradually adapted to their new pronunciation mode and obtained satisfactory phonatory function from 15 days to 2 months after operation. Four patients had slight aspiration after operation. Till the end of the follow-up, all patients survived and no local recurrence or distant metastasis had been observed. The motor function of the upper arm was not affected, only partial sensory loss occurred in the area near the incision. The scar of the incision could be covered by the short sleeve so as to obtain a better aesthetic effect. ConclusionUsing a tubular free flap from upper-lateral upper arm to repair the laryngotracheal circumferential defect after near-total laryngectomy for laryngeal cancer can achieve satisfactory phonatory restoration while preserve the motor function and aesthetics of the donor site.