The effect of symptomatology and mental wellbeing on quality of life in people with acoustic neuroma

Introduction: Acoustic neuroma (AN) research largely employs a medical framework to understand health out-comes. An alternative is to examine quality of life (QOL) outcomes. This study explored whether mental well-being (i.e., anxiety and depression) were predictive of QOL in those with AN over and above symptomatology. Methods: A nationwide online survey was distributed to 24 community organisations. The inclusion criteria were a diagnosis of AN irrespective of the treatment approach. There were 52 respondents. Mental well-being was assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and quality of life was assessed using Penn Acoustic Neuroma QOL scale (PANQOL).Results: The most frequently reported symptoms reported were poor balance, tinnitus, hearing loss, and head-ache. Preliminary analyses suggested that headaches, tinnitus and mental well-being were significantly correlated with QOL. Hierarchical regression revealed that these two symptoms and mental well-being accounted for 18.7% and 51.1% of the variance in QOL, respectively. In addition, there was a significant difference in depression scores between management types, with the surgery group having a significantly higher depression score than the radiation group.Conclusion: Symptoms and mood contribute to QOL for those diagnosed with AN. This can be understood through the common-sense model and fear of cancer recurrence. Screening for psychological difficulties should be pro-vided from the point of diagnosis to post-treatment to allow for targeted management plans to mitigate the effects of these on QOL.

Automated summary

This study aimed to explore the predictive role of mental well-being on quality of life for patients with acoustic neuroma (AN). The study found that headache, tinnitus, and mental well-being were significantly correlated with quality of life, with mental well-being having the largest impact. Additionally, the surgery group had significantly higher depression scores compared to the radiation group.