Preoperative educational materials improve the short‐term quality of life of patients with urinary cancer

Background This study aimed to evaluate the short‐term influence of preoperative educational materials on the quality of life in patients with newly diagnosed urinary cancer before surgery. Methods Patients with urinary cancer were retrospectively enrolled from April 2020 to March 2021. Quality of life was assessed using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire‐Core 30 version 3.0 on the day of admission and after patients read the education materials. Propensity score matching was applied to match baseline characteristics in subgroup analyses. Results A total of 180 patients were enrolled. Most of them were male with renal cancer. Sleep disturbance ( p = 0.004), appetite loss ( p = 0.013), fatigue ( p = 0.002), constipation ( p = 0.029), and physical function ( p = 0.006) showed statistically significant differences post‐intervention. Subgroup analyses suggested that improvements in sleep disturbance, fatigue, and physical function persisted in the younger group (≤ 60 years old), while bladder cancer patients showed improvements in physical function and cognitive function. Conclusion Preoperative educational materials were associated with short‐term improvements in specific quality of life domains among patients with urinary cancer. Younger age and bladder cancer diagnosis appeared to be potential effect modifiers.