Objective • to estimate the frequency of patients in Lebanon who report an impact of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINv) on their daily life and to evaluate the determinants of such impact, considering not only the prognostic factors related to the patient, disease and treatment, but also the intrinsic characteristics of the CINv, namely, the distinction between acute and delayed phase, and the intensity of nausea and vomiting. Methods • this prospective cross-sectional study, performed between January 2016 and December 2016, included 328 patients. the Functional Living Index -Emesis (FLIE) score was used to evaluate the impact of CINv on patients’ daily lives and day-to-day functioning.

Results • the results of the backward logistic regression taking the two-category FLIE score as dependent variable showed that current alcohol drinking would increase the odds of having a high FLIE score ≥ 108 by more than 8 times (p = 0.047; ORa = 8.114), while having an anticipatory feeling of nausea/vomiting, number of acute vomiting episodes and the intensity of late nausea would significantly increase the odds of having a FLIE score < 108 by 98.6%, 48.4% and 29.6% respectively (p < 0.0001, ORa = 0.014; p < 0.0001, ORa = 0.516 and p = 0.006, ORa = 0.704). Conclusion • Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting are still affecting the quality of life (QOL) of oncology patients despite all treatment novelties. A strong association between the number of vomiting episodes, the intensity of late nausea and the anticipatory feeling of nausea/vomiting and a decrease in the patient’s QOL and comfort was found. this research was able to shed the light on the importance of well-controlling CINv to preserve the patient’s QOL.

Keywords: quality of life; chemotherapy; nausea; vomiting