Quality of life and associated factors in patients three months after spinal tumor surgery

Spinal tumors constitute a heterogeneous group of neoplasms that may lead to neurological deficits, pain, and functional impairment. Beyond tumor biology and oncological treatment, patients’ quality of life (QoL) is shaped by psychosocial adaptation, yet early postoperative data are limited. This study evaluated QoL, functional independence, illness acceptance, and perceived social support three months after spinal tumor surgery to characterize early recovery needs. Sixty-seven patients were evaluated using four standardized instruments: the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF), Zimet’s Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), the Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale (I-ADL), and the Acceptance of Illness Scale (AIS). Statistical analysis included Spearman’s rank correlation, the Mann–Whitney U test, the Kruskal–Wallis test, and exploratory multiple linear regression. QoL differed significantly across disease stages, with the highest scores in stage I and progressive declines in later stages. Perceived social support also varied by disease stage, with the lowest values observed in stage IV. AIS correlated positively with all QoL domains (ρ = 0.42–0.69), while I-ADL correlated with the psychological, social, and environmental domains (ρ = 0.31–0.51). Disease stage correlated negatively with QoL across domains (ρ = −0.54 to − 0.89). Exploratory regression showed that AIS and MSPSS were independently associated with several QoL domains, while I-ADL was independently associated only with the psychological domain. These findings indicate that three months after spinal tumor surgery, QoL is associated with disease stage, illness acceptance, functional independence, and perceived social support, supporting psychosocial and functional screening in early postoperative rehabilitation.