Correlation of Symptom Burden and Nutritional Status of Patients with Cancer in Chemotherapy Stage Under Guidance of TCM Constitution

ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between symptom burden and nutritional status under Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) constitution classification in patients undergoing chemotherapy. MethodsData on the physical constitution, symptom burden, and nutritional status of 640 patients with malignant tumors within the 21st–28th days of chemotherapy treatment were collected and analyzed. ResultsSymptom burden was found to have a positive correlation with nutritional risk and TCM bias (except for idiosyncrasies), suggesting that constitution bias may be an important internal factor for the aggravation of clinical symptoms and malnutrition in patients with cancer. ConclusionThe relationship between symptom burden and nutritional status in chemotherapy under the guidance of TCM constitution can be studied to predict the nutritional status and symptom burden of patients after chemotherapy to guide the symptom and nutritional management of patients with cancer in the chemotherapy stage.