Mayo Clinic Cancer Center researchers recently published the first series of chapters in a two-part monograph discussing quality of life (QOL) assessment -- best practices, promising techniques and revolutionary applications. The monograph was published in the November-December issue of Current Problems in Cancer, with the second half to follow in early 2006.

"Quality of life assessment is integral to the successful treatment of cancer patients," says Jeff Sloan, Ph.D., Mayo Clinic oncology researcher. "While for many years clinicians have been collecting QOL data and using it in various ways, we now see a concerted effort to capture that information in common ways throughout the discipline. Our hope is that this series of papers will facilitate understanding of QOL assessment and subsequent use for improving patient care."

The authors define QOL as an overarching term referring to all aspects of a cancer patient's well-being, other than survival or tumor response. They tackle philosophical issues as well as issues of statistical relevance and data collection. Practical examples enable the reader to easily grasp the concepts they review or introduce. They review current understandings, recent advances and where QOL assessment discussion is likely to go in the future.

Issues addressed in this first of two publications include:

• Optimal Timing for QOL Assessments
• Combining Information Across Symptom Studies
• Presenting Longitudinal Data
• Incorporating Clinical Significance into a Study
• Handling Missing Data
• Quality of Life from a Patient's Perspective: Can We Believe the Patient?
• The Impact of Quality of Life Measurements on the Patient
• What Are The Future Directions in QOL Research?

Dr. Sloan and his co-authors say the need for accurate and complete QOL assessments that provide valuable health information must be balanced with the issue of time and mental burden on th
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Contact: Elizabeth Zimmermann
newsbureau@mayo.edu
507-284-5005
Mayo Clinic
9-Dec-2005

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