Table 3.
Descriptives of the four study groups on the EORTC QLQ-C30, GARS, and MPQ-PRI and MPQ-NWC scales, and ANOVA
| Outcomes | Mean (SD) | F | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global quality of life | |||
| Groin SLNB | 87.8 (14.2) | 0.55 | 0.647 |
| Groin CLND | 86.3 (13.3) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 87.2 (14.9) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 82.1 (16.6) | ||
| Physical functioning | |||
| Groin SLNB | 94.4 (10.0) | 2.68A | 0.051 |
| Groin CLND | 91.4 (9.2) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 95.3 (9.2) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 87.2 (10.7) | ||
| Role functioning | |||
| Groin SLNB | 95.4 (11.4) | 3.37B | 0.021 |
| Groin CLND | 94.0 (12.4) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 95.9 (12.8) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 83.3 (19.2) | ||
| Emotional functioning | |||
| Groin SLNB | 90.2 (17.1) | 0.15 | 0.930 |
| Groin CLND | 92.3 (13.3) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 89.0 (16.2) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 90.4 (13.5) | ||
| Cognitive functioning | |||
| Groin SLNB | 92.4 (15.4) | 0.51 | 0.675 |
| Groin CLND | 92.9 (12.6) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 93.9 (11.0) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 88.5 (17.2) | ||
| Social functioning | |||
| Groin SLNB | 93.8 (15.6) | 2.19 | 0.094 |
| Groin CLND | 91.7 (15.7) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 97.2 (8.3) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 85.9 (21.3) | ||
| Fatigue | |||
| Groin SLNB | 10.6 (14.8) | 2.68C | 0.051 |
| Groin CLND | 6.3 (9.5) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 9.5 (13.3) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 21.4 (23.3) | ||
| Pain | |||
| Groin SLNB | 6.9 (14.9) | 2.38 | 0.073 |
| Groin CLND | 7.1 (12.6) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 4.5 (11.2) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 16.7 (21.5) | ||
| GARS (18–72) | |||
| Groin SLNB | 18.8 (1.9) | 0.29 | 0.833 |
| Groin CLND | 18.9 (1.5) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 18.7 (1.9) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 19.3 (1.7) | ||
| Pain (VAS, 0–100) | |||
| Groin SLNB | 3.2 (8.0) | 0.91 | 0.437 |
| Groin CLND | 4.3 (7.4) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 3.4 (11.3) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 8.0 (11.6) | ||
| MPQ-PRI (0–36) | |||
| Groin SLNB | 1.8 (3.9) | 2.03 | 0.113 |
| Groin CLND | 1.9 (3.0) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 1.2 (3.1) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 4.1 (4.6) | ||
| MPQ-NWC (0–20) | |||
| Groin SLNB | 1.3 (2.7) | 2.37 | 0.074 |
| Groin CLND | 1.5 (2.5) | ||
| Axillary SLNB | 0.9 (2.3) | ||
| Axillary CLND | 3.2 (3.4) | ||
EORTC QLQ-C30 European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30, GARS Groningen Activity Restriction Scale,32,33 MPQ-PRI McGill Pain Questionnaire Pain Rating Index,31 MPQ-NWC McGill Pain Questionnaire Number of Words Chosen,31 ANOVA analysis of variance, SD standard deviation, SLNB sentinel lymph node biopsy, CLND completion lymph node dissection, VAS visual analog scale
Groin SLNB: n = 48; groin CLND: n = 14; axillary SLNB: n = 41; axillary CLND: n = 13.
Post hoc Bonferroni test: A = axillary CLND vs. axillary SLNB, P = 0.058; B = axillary CLND vs. axillary SLNB, P = 0.018; axillary CLND vs. groin SLNB, P = 0.024; C = axillary CLND vs. axillary SLNB, P = 0.085; axillary CLND vs. groin CLND, P = 0.063