Insomnia is defined as a predominant symptom of dissatisfaction with sleep quantity or quality during different phases of the sleep cycle and affects 30%–60% of patients with cancer.1 It is common in most cancers notably breast cancer. Given this high rate and negative impact in breast cancer, early identification of insomnia symptoms should be a priority. However, in practice, sleep disturbance seems under-recognised, and research on sleep in breast cancer is uncommon.

We evaluated the quality of sleep and the predisposing factors in breast cancer.

This was a cross-sectional study at the departments of medical oncology in the University Hospitals of Monastir and Sousse in Tunisia. It was carried out from 15 January 2017 to 15 June 2017. Inclusion criteria were confirmed diagnosis of cancer, age over 18 years and giving informed written consent to participate. Exclusion criteria were severe cognitive impairments, severe psychiatric disorder and a sleep disorder other than insomnia.

A questionnaire collected demographic and clinical characteristics. Patients were asked to complete the following self-administered rating questionnaires: Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) and Short …