Anemia is a common condition in cancer patients and is associated with a wide variety
of symptoms that impair quality of life (QoL). However, exactly how anemia affects QoL in cancer
patients is unclear because of the inconsistencies in its definition in previous reports. We aimed to
examine the clinical impact of anemia on the QoL of cancer patients using specific questionnaires.
We performed a post-hoc analysis of a multicenter, prospective, case-control study. We included
patients with cancer with (cases) or without (controls) anemia. Participants completed the European
Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life questionnaire version 3.0 (EORTC
QLQ-C30) and Euro QoL 5-dimension 3-level (EQ–5D–3L) questionnaire. Statistically significant
and clinically relevant differences in the global health status were examined. From 2015 to 2018,
365 patients were included (90 cases and 275 controls). We found minimally important differences in
global health status according to the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire (case vs. controls: 45.6 vs. 58%,
respectively; mean difference: −12.4, p < 0.001). Regarding symptoms, cancer patients with anemia
had more pronounced symptoms in six out of nine scales in comparison with those without anemia.
In conclusion, cancer patients with anemia had a worse QoL both clinically and statistically