Prof Josette Sin-yee Chor
School of Public Health
Chinese University of Hong Kong
Hong Kong, China
Project title
Changes in food and supplements consumption before and after diagnosis affecting quality of life in breast cancer survivors (2008/SD11)
Scientific abstract
Dietary changes and use of supplement are common in breast cancer survivors.
Currently there is very little documentation of how women might change their food and supplement consumption including herbal use after the diagnosis of breast cancer, what leads to these changes and what the impact of these changes on their quality of life may be. There has been no comprehensive study investigating the change in dietary pattern plus the use of supplements and herbs in the Chinese population. Patients will be recruited before their diagnosis is known so that the changes recorded can truly reflect the impact of diagnosis in their dietary changes and quality of life.
The proposed study will be conducted in two phases. In the first phase of the study, a qualitative study will be carried out to collect patients’ and experts’ opinions on breast cancer outcome and its association with diet. The second phase will then be to conduct a Prospective Cohort study based on the preliminary results of the phase one qualitative study.
Project plain language abstract
This study looks at how changes in dietary pattern and use of supplements/ herbs before and after diagnosis of breast cancer impacts on quality of life (QOL) in Chinese patients. It will assess the use of and changes in food and health supplements in women before and after breast cancer diagnosis in a Chinese population. We will investigate how their use affects patient’s QOL and the associating factors of their choice.
The study has two phases:
Phase I: Focus group discussions will recruit women who have survived breast cancer (>1 year) and healthcare professionals including traditional Chinese Medicine doctors to assess opinions on which food items, supplements and herbs potentially affect QOL of breast cancer patients and what factors affect their consumption.
Phase II:
(i) All patients attending the breast clinic with suspected breast cancer will be asked to complete an administered food and QOL questionnaire based on phase I study results.
(ii) Those with confirmed diagnosis will be followed and re-interviewed 6 months after diagnosis. Sociodemographics, medical history, medication, cancer staging, treatment and factors influencing change in food/supplement use will also be recorded. The association of food item/ supplement with the magnitude of change in QOL will be analyzed by statistical analysis.
| Institution and location | Degree | Year | Scientific Field |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), Hong Kong | BSc | 1993 | Biochemistry |
| The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong | MBBS | 1998 | Medicine |
| CUHK, Hong Kong | PhD | 2005 | Medical science |
| CUHK, Hong Kong | MPH | 2008 | Public health |
| Present | Assistant Professor, School of Public Health/ Department of Community and Family Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
|
| 2005 – Present | Physician, Jockey Club Centre for Osteoporosis Care and Control, School of Public Health, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
|
| 2007– 2008 | Physician, School of Public Health, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
|
| 2000 – 2001 | Physician, Jones Fok Clinical Group
|
| 1999 – 2000 | Clinical Officer, The City University of Hong Kong
|
Research interests
Women’s health; cancer prevention.
