REVIEW article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Breast Cancer
Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1617600
Management of Cancer Treatment-related fatigue in Advanced Breast Cancer Patients: An Expert Committee's Opinion
Provisionally accepted
Stéphanie Bécourt1Sophie Abadie-Lacourtoisie2Thierry Calvat3Isabelle Coudurier- Curveur4Frédéric Fiteni5Benoîte Mery6Guillaume Meynard7Florian Scotté8Pauline Vaflard9
Laurent ZELEK10,11*- 1Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Oscar Lambret Center, Lille, France
- 2Department of Medical Oncology, Institut cancérologie de l'ouest site Paul Papin., Angers, France
- 3Association Juris Santé, 69300 Lyon, France; Collectif 1310/Patients en réseau, 75006, Paris, France
- 4Association Les Lyonnes de Tatooine, 69126, Brindas, France
- 5Medical Oncology Department, University Hospital of Nîmes, 30900, Nîmes, France
- 6Centre Léon-Bérard, département de cancérologie médicale, 28, rue Laennec, 69008, Lyon, France
- 7Oncologie CHU de Besançon, Besançon, France
- 8Gustave Roussy Cancer Campus, 94805, Villejuif, France
- 9Department of Medical Oncology, Institut Curie, Paris, France
- 10Hôpital Avicenne, Bobigny, France
- 11Medical and Thoracic Oncology Department, Hopital Avicenne, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris, Bobigny, France
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Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a frequent and complex adverse event associated with advanced breast cancer (ABC). CRF intensity and impact on a patient's daily life are often exacerbated by cancer treatments. This specific manifestation, known as cancer treatment related fatigue (CTRF), begins with treatment onset and can persist beyond its course. CTRF is not unavoidable; its effect can be reduced through careful management and differential diagnosis from CRF.This article aims to review current recommendations for assessing and managing fatigue and present an expert opinion on priority actionable actions for evaluating and alleviating fatigue in ABC patients. In addition, to better understand the current standard of care and management options for ABC patients with fatigue, a quantitative survey was conducted from July to September 2023 through online standardized questionnaire containing identical questions between oncologists (N=43) and ABC patients (N=132) in France. Results confirm fatigue's complexity and multidimensional nature. Insufficient time and lack of communication during consultations contribute to ineffective diagnosis and management of fatigue, highlighting the need for improvement through better communication.
Keywords: Cancer-related fatigue, cancer treatment-related fatigue, Advanced breast cancer, metastatic breast cancer, physical activity, Adapted physical activity, Patient Education
Received: 24 Apr 2025; Accepted: 25 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Bécourt, Abadie-Lacourtoisie, Calvat, Coudurier- Curveur, Fiteni, Mery, Meynard, Scotté, Vaflard and ZELEK. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Laurent ZELEK, Hôpital Avicenne, Bobigny, France
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