Health-related quality of life among cancer patients in their last year of life: results from the PROFILES registry.
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Date
2018-10-01ICR Author
Author
Raijmakers, NJH
Zijlstra, M
van Roij, J
Husson, O
Oerlemans, S
van de Poll-Franse, LV
Type
Journal Article
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in the last year of life of cancer patients stratified by four periods of time before death. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between 2008 and 2015, cancer patients were invited to participate in PROFILES (Patient Reported Outcomes Following Initial Treatment and Long-term Evaluation of Survivorship) registry studies. Patients were eligible for inclusion in this secondary analysis if they had been invited to complete the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) in their last year of life (N = 892). Four hundred fifty-eight patients (51%) responded. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the HRQoL of cancer patients in the last 3 months of life (N = 61), the last 3-6 months (N = 110), the last 6-9 months (N = 138), or the last 9-12 months of their life (N = 129). RESULTS: Patients in the last 3 months report a significant lower HRQoL, lower functioning, and higher symptom burden of fatigue and appetite loss compared to patients in different time periods before death (p < 0.008). Clinical relevance of the differences for global QoL, cognitive, and social functioning was large. Patients' HRQoL in the last year of life was significantly lower than that of the normative population (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: All aspects of HRQoL are considerably impaired in patients with advanced cancer, with a marked lower HRQoL in the final months of life. This marked decline of HRQoL in the final months of life may be an indicator of approaching death and serve as an important trigger for end-of-life communication and decision-making about subsequent treatment and supportive care.
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Subject
Humans
Neoplasms
Terminal Care
Quality of Life
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Middle Aged
Female
Male
Surveys and Questionnaires
Research team
Clinical and Translational Sarcoma
Language
eng
Date accepted
2018-03-23
License start date
2018-10
Citation
Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2018, 26 (10), pp. 3397 - 3404
Publisher
SPRINGER