Trajectories of Fatigue and Quality of Life in People With Both Operable Pancreatic Tumor and Diabetes Mellitus

April 23, 2026 updated by: National Taiwan University Hospital

Trajectories of Fatigue, Glycated Hemoglobin, Diabetes Self-management, and Quality of Life in People With a Dual Diagnosis of Operable Pancreatic Tumor and Diabetes Mellitus: A Longitudinal Mixed-methods Study

In people with both burdens of OPT and DM, fatigue is the most common and deliberating symptom that likely impacts their quality of life and diabetes self-management. However, little is known about the longitudinal relationships among fatigue, its influencing factors, glycemic status, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with both OPT and DM during the first-year post-operation. Thus, the purposes of this study are to (1) describe the trajectories of fatigue, HbA1c, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with OPT and DM within 12 months post-operation; (2) examine the relationships among the trajectories of fatigue, its influencing factors, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with OPT and DM; and (3) understand the experiences of people with both OPT and DM regarding changes in challenges with diabetes, fatigue, diabetes self-management, diabetes care needs, and quality of life.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Detailed Description

Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease, and surgery is one of the treatment options with the goal of curing the disease. However, people with operable pancreatic tumor (OPT) often have a high prevalence of comorbid diabetes mellitus (DM) that is likely to result in increased glucose fluctuation and poor glycemic control. Importantly, in people with both burdens of OPT and DM, fatigue is the most common and deliberating symptom that likely impacts their quality of life and diabetes self-management. However, little is known about the longitudinal relationships among fatigue, its influencing factors, glycemic status, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with both OPT and DM for 12 months of follow-up. Thus, the purposes of this study are to (1) describe the trajectories of fatigue, HbA1c, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with OPT and DM within 12 months of follow-up; (2) examine the relationships among the trajectories of fatigue, its influencing factors, diabetes self-management, and quality of life in people with OPT and DM; and (3) understand the experiences of people with both OPT and DM regarding changes in challenges with diabetes, fatigue, diabetes self-management, diabetes care needs, and quality of life. Guided by the Theory of unpleasant symptoms, this two-year study will use a longitudinal concurrent mixed methods design. Participants will be recruited from an outpatient pancreatic surgical department at a medical center in northern Taiwan using purposive sampling. For the quantitative component, data will be collected using structured questionnaires over five time points (baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months post baseline),The Chinese version of a structured questionnaire, including the demographic and clinical characteristics form, Diabetes Distress Scale, Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, Fatigue Symptom Inventory, Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities, and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire will be used. For data analysis, latent growth curve modeling under a structural equation modeling framework using Mplus version 8.6 will be performed. A sample of 115 participants with both OPT and DM will be recruited. To illuminate our understanding of the findings from the quantitative component of the study, the qualitative component will use semi-structured qualitative interviews to explore the changes in challenges with diabetes, fatigue, diabetes self-management, diabetes care needs, and quality of life for a subsample of 20 participants who reported their fatigue intensity scores as 4 or more on the Fatigue Symptom Inventory concurrently. Qualitative content analysis will be used to analyze the qualitative data.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
99

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
      • Taipei, Taiwan
        • National Taiwan University Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The participants will be recruited from a pancreatic surgical outpatient department (OPD) at a medical center located in northern Taiwan.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Operable pancreatic tumor within 5 years and are following up at the outpatient department
  • Diagnosed with diabetes mellitus
  • Aged 18 or above
  • Can communicate in Mandarin or Taiwanese
  • Agree to participate and sign the informed consent form

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Under active treatment for cancer other than pancreatic tumor
  • Have a cognitive impairment
  • Do not know that they have pancreatic tumor
  • Diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Fatigue
Time Frame: baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months post baseline
Fatigue Symptom Inventory
baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months post baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
National Taiwan University Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Hsuan-Ju Kuo, PhD, National Taiwan University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 30, 2023

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 27, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 27, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 22, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 22, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 28, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 29, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 23, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 202302123RIND

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data (IPD) will only be available to other researchers on reasonable request and only de-identified data will potentially be available to protect the rights of the participants.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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