Bivariate logistic regression model diagnostics applied to analysis of outlier cancer patients with comorbid diabetes and hypertension in Malawi.

The joint occurrence of diabetes and hypertension conditions in a patient is common. The two diseases share a number of risk factors, and are hence usually modelled concurrently using bivariate logistic regression. However, the postestimation assessment for the model, such as analysis of outlier observations, is seldom carried out. In this article, we apply outlier detection methods for multivariate data models to study characteristics of cancer patients with joint outlying diabetes and hypertension outcomes observed from among 398 randomly selected cancer patients at Queen Elizabeth and Kamuzu Central Hospitals in Malawi. We used R software version 4.2.2 to perform the analyses and STATA version 12 for data cleaning. The results showed that one patient was an outlier to the bivariate diabetes and hypertension logit model. The patient had both diabetes and hypertension and was based in rural area of the study population, where it was observed that comorbidity of the two diseases was uncommon. We recommend thorough analysis of outlier patients to comorbid diabetes and hypertension before rolling out interventions for managing the two diseases in cancer patients to avoid misaligned interventions. Future research could perform the applied diagnostic assessments for the bivariate logit model on a wider and larger dataset of the two diseases.

Quality of life among cancer patients at Queen Elizabeth and Kamuzu Central Hospitals in Malawi: a cross-sectional double-center study.

Introduction: Many cancer patients experience psychosocial challenges that affect quality of life during the trajectory of their disease process. We aimed at estimating quality of life among cancer patients at two major tertiary hospitals in Malawi. Methods: The study was conducted among 398 cancer patients using semi-structured questionnaire. Quality of life was measured using EQ-5D-3L instrument. Results: Mean age was 45 years ± 12.77. Pain (44%) was the most prevalent problem experienced by cancer patients. About 23% had worst imaginable health status on the subjective visual analogues scale. Attending cancer services at QECH (AOR= 0.29, 95% CI: 0.17-0.54, p<0.001) and having normal weight (AOR=0.25, 95% CI: 0.08-0.74, p = 0.012), were associated with improved quality of life. A history of ever taken alcohol (AOR= 2.36, 95% CI: 1.02-5.44, p = 0.045) and multiple disease comorbidities (AOR= 3.78, 95% CI: 1.08-13.12, p = 0.037) were associated with poor quality of life. Conclusion: Loss of earning, pain, marital strife, sexual dysfunction, were among the common psychosocial challenges experienced. History of ever taken alcohol and multiple comorbidities were associated with poor quality of life. There is need to integrate psychosocial solutions for cancer patients to improve their quality of life and outcomes.

Burden of chronic disease comorbidities among cancer patients at Queen Elizabeth and Kamuzu Central Hospitals in Malawi: an exploratory cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: chronic disease comorbidities are common among cancer patients in most parts of the world, however; there are limited data on the same for Malawi. Comorbidities worsen clinical outcomes and are associated with lower quality of life among cancer patients. We aimed at estimating chronic disease comorbidities and associated factors among cancer patients attending oncology services at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QECH) and Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) in Blantyre and Lilongwe respectively. METHODS: we conducted a cross-sectional study at QECH and KCH in Malawi from January to March 2021. Participants were recruited using simple random sampling technique at the oncology clinics and were interviewed using structured questionnaires. The College of Medicine Research and Ethics Committee (COMREC) approved the study and informed consent was obtained with each participant. Data were analyzed in Stata version 14 and summary statistics were presented as frequencies and proportions. RESULTS: we interviewed 398 cancer patients and the mean age was 45.4years (SD± 12.77). The common cancers were cervical (30%), Kaposi´s sarcoma (24%), breast (11%), esophageal (4%) and leukemia (4%). The prevalence of chronic disease comorbidities was 61.56% (n=398) and common conditions included: HIV and AIDS (43%), depression (9%) hypertension (8%) and anemia (9%). Chronic disease comorbidities were significantly associated with formal employment (p<0.01) and obesity (p<0.02). CONCLUSION: chronic disease comorbidities were prevalent among cancer patients in the study settings in Malawi. There is a need to develop a multidisciplinary approach when managing cancer patients with emphasis on active screening for the common conditions as reported by this study.