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Quality of Life Research

Gepubliceerd in:

01-02-2010

The Functional Living Index-Cancer: estimating its reliability based on clinical trial data

Auteurs: Annouschka Laenen, Ariel Alonso

Gepubliceerd in: Quality of Life Research | Uitgave 1/2010

Abstract

Purpose

The Functional Living Index-Cancer was developed to measure quality of life in cancer trials as an adjunct to the usual clinical outcomes. The scale is considered conceptually good, since it covers a broad range of relevant aspects of quality of life, but the main criticism has been that its reliability has never been properly investigated. In this paper, we investigate the reliability of the FLIC.

Methods

We apply a new methodology based on linear mixed models that allows estimating reliability from real clinical data. The reliability of the FLIC is estimated using data coming from a longitudinal study in breast cancer. With this new approach, we avoid the need for additional data collection on which classical reliability studies are based.

Results

The average reliability of the FLIC over the repeated measurements is satisfactory, even though the initial measurement in the study showed a somewhat lower value. Taking into account the longitudinal character of the measurements, we show that highly reliable information can be obtained with a relatively small number of measurements per patient.

Conclusion

The FLIC provides reliable quality of life measurements in patients with breast cancer. Additional studies would be welcome to validate these results in other populations.

vorige artikel Utility of the twelve-item World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHO-DAS II) for discriminating depression “caseness” and severity in Spanish primary care patients

volgende artikel Health and role functioning: the use of focus groups in the development of an item bank

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Titel: The Functional Living Index-Cancer: estimating its reliability based on clinical trial data
Auteurs: Annouschka Laenen
Ariel Alonso
Publicatiedatum: 01-02-2010
Uitgeverij: Springer Netherlands
Gepubliceerd in: Quality of Life Research / Uitgave 1/2010
Print ISSN: 0962-9343
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-2649
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-009-9568-x

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Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

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