• Sriram Yennurajalingam, Dave Balachandran, Sandra L Pedraza Cardozo, Elyssa A Berg, Gary B Chisholm, Akhila Reddy, Vera DeLa Cruz, Janet L Williams, and Eduardo Bruera.
• Department of Palliative Care and Rehabilitation Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Texas, USA.
• BMJ Support Palliat Care. 2017 Sep 1; 7 (3): 274-280.

AimsSleep Disturbance (SD) is a severe debilitating symptom in advanced cancer patients (ACP). However, routine screening of SD is uncommon. The primary aim of this study was to determine the optimal cutoff score for SD screening for Edmonton Symptom Assessment system (ESAS) sleep item using Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) as a gold standard. We also determined the frequency of SD, obstructive sleep apnea symptoms (OSA) and restless leg syndrome (RLS) and factors associated with SD.MethodsWe prospectively surveyed 180 consecutive ACP. Patients completed validated assessment for symptoms. We determined epidemiological performance, receiver operating characteristics, and correlations of SD.ResultsSD according to PSQI was diagnosed in 112/180 (62%), and median (IQR) ESAS sleep was 5 (2-7). ESAS sleep ≥ 4 had a sensitivity of 74% and 80%, and specificity of 71% and 64% in the training and validation samples, respectively for screening of SD. The frequency of OSA was 61%; RLS was 38%. ESAS sleep was associated [r, p-value] with PSQI (0.61, <0.0001), pain (0.4, <0.0001); fatigue (0.35, <0.0001); depression (0.20, 0.006); anxiety (0.385, <0.0001); drowsiness (0.385, <0.0001), shortness of breath (0.24, <0.0014); anorexia (0.32, <0.0001), well-being (0.36, <0.0001). Multivariate analysis found well-being (OR per point 1.34, p=0.0003), pain (OR 1.21, p<0.0037), dyspnea (OR 1.16, p=0.027), and OSA (OR 0.31, P=0.003) as independent predictors of SD. There was no association between SD and survival.ConclusionsSD is frequent and ESAS SD item ≥ 4 has good sensitivity for SD screening.Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

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