What value is given to quality of life assessment by health professionals considering response to palliative chemotherapy for advanced cancer?

A study was designed to obtain information on the importance of quality of life assessment (QL) during palliative chemotherapy. A questionnaire was answered by 542 health professionals (392 general practitioners, 20 specialist oncologists, and 130 oncology nurses). In both simulated patient situations and multiple-choice questions, all groups rated QL higher than other standard methods of assessment. General practitioners and oncologists appeared to weight the assessment criteria more equally than nurses who gave strong emphasis to QL. In the simulated patient situation, there was a small degree of interaction between QL and other assessment criteria. However, the analysis showed that QL was regarded as an independent variable and was considered to be the most important objective of palliative chemotherapy for advanced cancer.