Objective   To evaluate the effect of radiation-induced brain injury(RIBI) on the psychology and quality of life(QOL) of nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC) patients after radiotherapy.

  Methods   Psychological assessment was conducted on 46 NPC patients with RIBI(case group) and in another 46 NPC patients without RIBI(control group) using the Symptom Check List 90(SCL-90).The QOL was evaluated in the two groups using the World Health Organization QOL BREF questionnaire(WHOQOL-BREF).The different scores for SCL-90 and WHOQOL-BREF in the two groups and the risk factors of the two rating scales were also investigated.

  Results   No significant difference was found in age, gender, educational background, radiation dosage, and post-radiation interval between the RIBI and non-RIBI groups(P > 0.05).Compared with the control group, patients with RIBI obtained significantly higher scores in the four factors of SCL-90, i.e., interpersonal, anxiety, and depression, among others(sleep and diet).Significant differences were found between the two groups(P < 0.001).Nevertheless, the patients with RIBI obtained significantly lower score in the WHOQOL-BREF compared with the control group in terms of physical and psychological health, as well as interpersonal relationships, with statistically significant differences (P < 0.001).Gender, age, and educational background were not correlated with the psychological disorder and QOL of patients with RIBI (P > 0.05).The scores for SCL-90 negatively correlated with that for the WHOQOL-BREF(Pearson's correlation.P=0.009).

  Conclusion   NPC patients with RIBI exhibit negative emotions and poor QOL.Moreover, negative emotions, such as anxiety and depression, worsen the QOL of NPC patients with RIBI.