Table 4. Frequencies of determinants of food choice, reasons to eat or not to eat, state after the meal and median (p25–p75) of hunger and food satisfaction scales of women with breast cancer (BC) in chemotherapy (CT) (n = 23).
| Variable | T0 | T1 | T2 | p-value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | % or Median (p25–p75) |
n | % or Median (p25–p75) |
n | % or Median (p25 –p75) |
||
| Determinants of food choice | |||||||
| Appetite | 4 | 17.39 | 2 | 08.69 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.055 |
| Food habit | 3 | 13.04 | 5 | 21.73 | 1 | 04.34 | 0.180 |
| Available time | 4 | 17.39 | 4 | 17.39 | 2 | 08.69 | 0.641 |
| Available Food | 7 | 30.43 | 11 | 47.82 | 10 | 43.47 | 0.522 |
| Taste | 9 | 39.13 | 7 | 30.43 | 12 | 52.17 | 0.368 |
| Reasons to eat | |||||||
| Always eat at this time | 8 | 34.78 | 4 | 17.39 | 7 | 30.43 | 0.307 |
| Hunger | 6 | 26.08 | 10 | 43.47 | 8 | 34.78 | 0.397 |
| Follow friends/Family | 1 | 04.34 | 2 | 08.69 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| Friends/family request | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| Follow medical/nutritional guidance | 3 | 13.04 | 5 | 21.73 | 5 | 21.73 | 0.607 |
| Because they offered | 4 | 17.39 | 3 | 13.04 | 5 | 21.73 | 0.741 |
| Reasons not to eat | |||||||
| Do not eat at this time | 0 | 00.00 | 0 | 00.00 | 1 | 04.34 | 0.368 |
| Reduced apetite | 1 | 04.34 | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.607 |
| I had nothing to eat | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| I didn’t like what I had to eat | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| Nausea | 0 | 00.00 | 2 | 08.69 | 1 | 04.34 | 0.223 |
| The smell bothers me | 0 | 00.00 | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| Severe pain | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.368 |
| State after the meal | |||||||
| Still hungry | 3 | 13.04 | 2 | 08.69 | 5 | 21.73 | 0.368 |
| Satisfied | 18 | 78.26 | 17 | 73.91 | 13 | 56.52 | 0.174 |
| Stuffed | 2 | 08.69 | 1 | 04.34 | 1 | 04.34 | 0.779 |
| Nauseated | 0 | 00.00 | 2 | 08.69 | 4 | 17.39 | 0.091 |
| With “burning” in the stomach | 1 | 04.34 | 1 | 04.34 | 0 | 00.00 | 0.607 |
| Hunger |
23 |
5.0 (2.0–5.0) |
23 |
5.0 (3.0–8.0) |
23 |
5.0 (2.0–6.0) |
0.113† |
| Meal enjoyment |
23 |
9.0a (7.0–10.0) |
23 |
6.0b (5.0–10.0) |
23 |
9.0a (8.0–10.0) |
0.021† |
T0, day of the first cycle of CT infusion; T1, day of the intermediate cycle of CT infusion and T2, day of the last cycle of CT infusion. Frequencies horizontally followed by different letters differ statistically, as post-hoc test at 5% probability (Cochran's Q test + McNemar’s post hoc).
† Friedman test + Dunn’s post-hoc; n = 23 because 32 women do not eat during the hospital stay, making it impracticable compare the individual with him/herself. Subjects were allowed to choose more than one option for each question. To evaluate hunger and meal enjoyment, a visual analogue scale (VAS) (0 to 10 cm) was used.