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OS3.6 Prediagnostic symptoms and signs of adult glioma: the patients’ view


 
 
 Little is known about the symptoms and signs glioma patients experience in the year before diagnosis, either or not resulting in health care usage. The objective of this study was to determine the incidence of several symptoms and signs glioma patients experienced in the year prior to diagnosis, as well as visits to a general practitioner (GP) related to these issues.
 
 
 
 This was a cross-sectional study, including adults diagnosed with a glioma <12 months ago. Patients were asked to complete a 30-item study-specific questionnaire, if possible with input of a proxy, focusing on symptoms and signs they experienced in the 12 months before diagnosis. For each indicated symptom/sign, patients were asked whether they consulted the GP for this issue. In addition, the presence of comorbidity and other chronic complaints were assessed, as well as consulted health care professionals (HCPs) in the year prior to diagnosis. The statistical analyses were corrected for multiple testing.
 
 
 
 Between July 2016 and March 2019, 58 patients completed the questionnaires, 54 (93%) with input of a proxy. Forty-one (72%) patients were men, with a median age of 60 years (range 43–78), and the median time since diagnosis was 4 months (range 1–12). Forty (69%) patients had a comorbidity or chronic complaint, and the median number of consulted HCPs was 2 (range 0–8). The median number of symptoms/signs experienced in the year before diagnosis was 8 (range 2–19) in low-grade and 5 (range 0–24) in high-grade glioma (p=0.258). The five most frequently mentioned problems were fatigue (34/58, 59%), mental tiredness (28/58, 48%), sleeping disorder (23/58, 40%), headache (22/58, 38%) and stress (20/58, 34%), with no differences between low- and high grade glioma. Twenty-five (43%) patients had visited the GP with at least one issue. We found that patients who did consult their GP reported significantly more often muscle weakness (11 vs 3, p=0.002), paralysis in for example a hand or leg (10 vs 3, p=0.006), or a change in consciousness (9 vs 3, p=0.013) compared to those that did not consult the GP. However, they did not differ with respect to the number of symptoms (median 7 vs 5), comorbidities and chronic complaints (median 1 vs 1), or overall health care usage (median 3 vs 2).
 
 
 
 Glioma patients experience a range of problems in the year prior to diagnosis, but patients who consult the GP report significantly more often neurological problems.
