Table 1.
Comparison of descriptive characteristics of intervention and control group patients (n = 60)
| Experimental Group (n = 30) | Control Group (n = 30) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean ± Sd | Mean ± Sd | z | pa | ||
| Age (Years) | 54.37 ± 10.39 | 57.77 ± 9.51 | −0.932 | 0.351 | |
| Body Mass Index | 21.33 ± 4.21 | 20.84 ± 3.4 | −0.133 | 0.894 | |
| Weight Lost During Chemotherapy | 3.13 ± 5.63 | 2.8 ± 4.16 | −0.155 | 0.877 | |
| Duration of Radiotherapy (months) | 12 ± 8.3 | 12.73 ± 7.71 | −0.637 | 0.524 | |
| n (%) | n (%) | X2* | p** | ||
| Gender | Female | 14 (48.3%) | 15 (51.7%) | 0.067 | 0.796 |
| Male | 16 (51.6%) | 15 (48.4%) | |||
| Diagnosis | Breast Cancer | 11 (64.7%) | 6 (35.3%) | 6.838 | 0.554 |
| Prostate Cancer | 5 (50%) | 5 (50%) | |||
| Larynx Cancer | 2 (50%) | 2 (50%) | |||
| Glial Tumor | 4 (57.1%) | 3 (42.9%) | |||
| Stomach Cancer | 0 (0%) | 2 (100%) | |||
| Lung Cancer | 6 (54.5%) | 5 (45.5%) | |||
| Rectal Cancer | 1 (33.3%) | 2 (66.7%) | |||
| Thyroid Cancer | 1 (20%) | 4 (80%) | |||
| Pelvic Cancer | 0 (0%) | 1 (100%) | |||
| Marital status | Married | 24 (49%) | 25 (51%) | 0.111 | 0.739 |
| Single | 6 (54.5%) | 5 (45.5%) | |||
| Number of children | 0 | 4 (44.4%) | 5 (55.6%) | 3.384 | 0.641 |
| 1 | 1 (50%) | 1 (50%) | |||
| 2 | 8 (72.7%) | 3 (27.3%) | |||
| 3 | 6 (37.5%) | 10 (62.5%) | |||
| 4 | 4 (50%) | 4 (50%) | |||
| ≥ 5 | 7 (50%) | 7 (50%) | |||
| Educational status | Literate | 12 (46.2%) | 14 (53.8%) | 4.043 | 0.257 |
| Primary education | 6 (37.5%) | 10 (62.5%) | |||
| High school | 5 (55.6%) | 4 (44.4%) | |||
| University and above | 7 (77.8%) | 2 (22.2%) | |||
| Occupation | Housewife | 12a (50%) | 12a (50%) | 10.202 | 0.070 |
| Officer | 8a (88.9%) | 1b (11.1%) | |||
| Worker | 4a (57.1%) | 3a (42.9%) | |||
| Unemployed | 1a (14.3%) | 6b (85.7%) | |||
| Self-employed | 0a (0%) | 3a (100%) | |||
| Retired | 5a (50%) | 5a (50%) | |||
| Presence of another disease | Yes | 14 (45.2%) | 17 (54.8%) | 0.601 | 0.438 |
| No | 16 (55.2%) | 13 (44.8%) | |||
| Type of treatment | Inpatient | 19 (52.8%) | 17 (47.2%) | 0.278 | 0.598 |
| Outpatient | 11 (45.8%) | 13 (54.2%) | |||
| Regular medication intake | Yes | 15 (46.9%) | 17 (53.1%) | 0.268 | 0.605 |
| No | 15 (53.6%) | 13 (46.4%) | |||
| Receiving Chemotherapy | Yes | 9 (47.4%) | 10 (52.6%) | 0.077 | 0.781 |
| No | 21 (51.2%) | 20 (48.8%) | |||
| Number of Chemotherapy Cycles | ≤ 3 | 5 (62.5%) | 3 (37.5%) | 1.269 | 0.260 |
| ≥ 4 | 4 (36. %4) | 7 (63.6%) | |||
| Weight Loss during Chemotherapy | Yes | 8 (44.4%) | 10 (55.6%) | 0.317 | 0.573 |
| No | 22 (52.4%) | 20 (47.6%) | |||
| Regular Dieting | Yes | 17 (53.1%) | 15 (46.9%) | 0.268 | 0.605 |
| No | 13 (46.4%) | 15 (53.6%) | |||
| Vitamin Nutritional Supplement | Yes | 7 (38.9%) | 11 (61.1%) | 1.270 | 0.260 |
| No | 23 (54.8%) | 19 (45.2%) | |||
| Nutritional Information Tool | Mass Media | 5 (55.6%) | 4 (44.4%) | 2.254 | 0.689 |
| Dietitian | 5 (50%) | 5 (50%) | |||
| Doctor | 16 (50%) | 16 (50%) | |||
| Health Centers | 0 (0%) | 2 (100%) | |||
| Environment | 4 (57.1%) | 3 (42.9%) | |||
| Influence of Knowledge on Behavior | Yes | 17 (51.5%) | 16 (48.5%) | 0.067 | 0.795 |
| No | 13 (48.1%) | 14 (51.9%) | |||
aMann Whitney U Test
*Chi-Square Test
**p < 0.05