Correlation of symptom clusters, fatigue, and quality of life in pituitary tumor patients
Abstract
This longitudinal study investigated the composition, progression, and clinical implications of symptom clusters among patients with pituitary adenomas across four perioperative time points. A total of 104 patients undergoing transsphenoidal surgery were assessed using validated instruments, including the MDASI-BT, MFI-20, HADS, PSQI, and SF-36. Three major symptom clusters were identified: neurological, endocrine, and fatigue–emotional–sleep disturbance (FES). The FES cluster was associated with the most severe fatigue, poorest sleep quality, and lowest quality of life scores, particularly during the early postoperative period. While patients in the neurological cluster experienced significant recovery over time, those in the endocrine and FES clusters showed more prolonged or fluctuating symptom trajectories. The minimal overlap between clusters revealed a high degree of heterogeneity in symptom experiences, underscoring the importance of tailored management. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first longitudinal studies in a Chinese population to examine symptom cluster dynamics in pituitary tumor patients across multiple time points using multidimensional patient-reported outcomes. These findings contribute to novel insights for precision symptom management, with implications for improving recovery, reducing fatigue, and enhancing quality of life in this unique clinical population.
Copyright (c) 2026 Chunxiang Chen, Xiaomei Zhang, Qian Wu, Xujuan Xu
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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