Self-reported pain in breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant radiotherapy

Breast cancer patients receiving radiotherapy (RT) commonly report pain, contributing to physical and emotional distress, and potentially resulting in poor quality of life. This study prospectively identified trends and risk factors in patient-reported pain associated with breast irradiation using the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) and a study-specific Skin Symptom Assessment (SSA). Before RT and once per week during RT, patients completed the ESAS and SSA. Upon RT completion, patients were contacted via telephone to complete both assessments weekly for 6 weeks, and a final assessment was conducted 1–3 months post-RT. Only data from patients who had completed both assessments before, at least once during, and at least once after RT were included in our analysis. A total of 426 patients provided data for the analysis. Overall acute pain increased significantly at week 1–2 (p