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What symptom and functional dimensions can be predictors for global ratings of overall quality of life in lung cancer patients?

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Abstract

Purpose

This study explores what dimensions of a health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire predict global ratings of overall quality of life (QOL) in lung cancer patients in assessments by patients and significant others, respectively.

Material and methods

The analyses were based on dyadic assessments from lung cancer patients and their significant others. A subset of scales and items from the Swedish version of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ C30 and the lung-cancer-specific module, LC-13, was selected. Using multiple regression procedures, the relative importance of different symptoms and of functional impairments in predicting overall QOL was examined.

Results

The multiple regressions revealed that emotional functioning and fatigue were the only significant predictors of overall QOL for both the patients and the significant others’ assessments. In addition, physical functioning was found to be another predictor in the significant others’ assessments.

Conclusion

The results emphasize that it is essential to consider both emotional functioning and fatigue as important areas for overall QOL in lung cancer patients.

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Acknowledgment

This study was supported by grants from the Health Care Sciences Post-Graduate School at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden. The study on factors influencing agreement in symptom ratings from which data has been used was supported by grants from the Swedish Cancer Society and the Swedish Foundation for Health Care Sciences and Allergy Research. Special thanks are due to the Swedish Cooperative Union for generously donating gift vouchers to the participating patients and significant others. We also thank Professor Carol Tishelman for sharing data from lung cancer patients derived from a study financed by the Swedish Cancer Society, the Swedish Heart–Lung Society, the Swedish National Research Council, and the Swedish Foundation for Health Care Sciences and Allergy Research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Nursing, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, 23300, 141 83, Huddinge, Sweden

    Ulrika Östlund, Agneta Wennman-Larsen, Petter Gustavsson & Yvonne Wengström

  2. Department of Research and Education, Karolinska University Hospital, Eugeniahemmet T4:02, 171 76, Stockholm, Sweden

    Yvonne Wengström

Authors
  1. Ulrika Östlund
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  2. Agneta Wennman-Larsen
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  3. Petter Gustavsson
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  4. Yvonne Wengström
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Correspondence to Ulrika Östlund.

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Östlund, U., Wennman-Larsen, A., Gustavsson, P. et al. What symptom and functional dimensions can be predictors for global ratings of overall quality of life in lung cancer patients?. Support Care Cancer 15, 1199–1205 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-007-0239-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-007-0239-6

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