BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) may be affected by cure-directed therapy given to pediatric oncology patients. Identification of HRQOL risk/protective factors may facilitate the development of clinical interventions. OBJECTIVE: The study purpose was to assess adolescents' psychosocial HRQOL soon after treatment completion using patient-reported outcome measures. METHODS: Subjects were recruited from May 2005 to February 2007 to participate in a structured interview that collected information on demographics, symptoms, HRQOL (PedsQL 4.0), and coping (Adolescent Coping Orientation for Problem Strategies Questionnaire). Disease/treatment information was abstracted from medical records. Data analysis included descriptive approaches for data summarization and regression modeling for estimation and testing. RESULTS: A total of 94 participants were included in the analyses. Their mean psychosocial functioning summary scores fell between the means reported for healthy children and children with cancer; 18% were more than 1 standard deviation below the mean. In the univariate analyses, lower psychosocial HRQOL was associated with central nervous system tumors (P = .01), radiation therapy (P = .01), and treatment duration of 13 to 24 months (P < .01). Protective factors identified in multivariable analyses included older age and use of humor for coping; risk factors included symptoms of pain, fatigue, and posttraumatic stress. CONCLUSION: Although most patients rated their psychosocial HRQOL as good, a subset (18%) may have increased risk for impaired HRQOL. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Clinical assessment of psychosocial HRQOL using patient-reported outcome measures during the early posttreatment phase is recommended. Longitudinal studies are needed to further explore risk/protective factors and to identify targeted interventions to minimize the adverse psychosocial effects of cancer treatment and maximize healthy survivorship.
BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) may be affected by cure-directed therapy given to pediatric oncology patients. Identification of HRQOL risk/protective factors may facilitate the development of clinical interventions. OBJECTIVE: The study purpose was to assess adolescents' psychosocial HRQOL soon after treatment completion using patient-reported outcome measures. METHODS: Subjects were recruited from May 2005 to February 2007 to participate in a structured interview that collected information on demographics, symptoms, HRQOL (PedsQL 4.0), and coping (Adolescent Coping Orientation for Problem Strategies Questionnaire). Disease/treatment information was abstracted from medical records. Data analysis included descriptive approaches for data summarization and regression modeling for estimation and testing. RESULTS: A total of 94 participants were included in the analyses. Their mean psychosocial functioning summary scores fell between the means reported for healthy children and children with cancer; 18% were more than 1 standard deviation below the mean. In the univariate analyses, lower psychosocial HRQOL was associated with central nervous system tumors (P = .01), radiation therapy (P = .01), and treatment duration of 13 to 24 months (P < .01). Protective factors identified in multivariable analyses included older age and use of humor for coping; risk factors included symptoms of pain, fatigue, and posttraumatic stress. CONCLUSION: Although most patients rated their psychosocial HRQOL as good, a subset (18%) may have increased risk for impaired HRQOL. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Clinical assessment of psychosocial HRQOL using patient-reported outcome measures during the early posttreatment phase is recommended. Longitudinal studies are needed to further explore risk/protective factors and to identify targeted interventions to minimize the adverse psychosocial effects of cancer treatment and maximize healthy survivorship.
Authors: Anna Spathis; Sara Booth; Sarah Grove; Helen Hatcher; Isla Kuhn; Stephen Barclay Journal: J Adolesc Young Adult Oncol Date: 2015-03 Impact factor: 2.223
Authors: Samantha C Sodergren; Olga Husson; Jessica Robinson; Gudrun E Rohde; Iwona M Tomaszewska; Bella Vivat; Rebecca Dyar; Anne-Sophie Darlington Journal: Qual Life Res Date: 2017-03-01 Impact factor: 4.147
Authors: Mikaela Doig; Eva Bezak; Nayana Parange; Peter Gorayski; Victoria Bedford; Michala Short Journal: Cancers (Basel) Date: 2022-08-15 Impact factor: 6.575