A review of health-related quality of life in patients with brain tumors treated with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT): Radiation oncology perspective

Abstract Quality of life (QoL) incorporates a person’s multidimensional well-being and represents a person’s overall contentment with life. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core QoL questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) and QLQ-BN20 questionnaires are commonly used for objective questionnaire-based QoL measurement. Tumor site, size, laterality, hypothalamus, hormone, and epilepsy are all factors related to QoL in brain tumor (BT) patients. Complete surgical resection and lower dose per fraction radiation therapy in low-grade gliomas with loco-regional control will improve or maintain QoL domain scores. High scores on the functional scales and global QoL indicate good functioning and QoL, while high scores on the symptom scales indicate the existence of severe symptoms. A promising method for reducing cognitive side effects after cranial radiotherapy is hippocampal-sparing radiotherapy. Hippocampal avoidance showed significantly better outcomes for patients treated with hippocampal sparing in terms of better cognitive functions and QoL. The advancement of surgical strategies and radiation technologies in various types of BTs has resulted in improved functional outcomes and survival, but the issues of patient perception and life quality remain difficult to assess and modern aggressive treatment techniques should include QoL assessment in routine practice.