Comparing the Performance Status Scale and MD Anderson Dysphagia Inventory as swallowing outcome measures in head and neck cancer: a prospective cohort study

Objectives To examine the relationship between the two disease‐specific measures currently in use to assess swallowing outcomes following treatment in patients with head and neck cancer: the Performance Status Scale ( PSS ) and MD Anderson Dysphagia Inventory ( MDADI ). Design A prospective cohort study. Setting Four head and neck cancer multidisciplinary clinics in the North of E ngland Cancer Network. Participants 114 patients with cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract. Main outcome measure Measures of swallowing function administered prospectively across 4 timepoints Results Spearman's correlation coefficients were used to measure the relationship between the two scales. There was statistically significant correlation between the two tools at pre‐treatment ( r s  = 0.428, P  < 0.000), 3 months post‐treatment (r s  = 0.454, P  < 0.002), 6 months post‐treatment ( r s  = 0.551, P  < 0.000) and 12 months post‐treatment ( r s  = 0.680, P  < 0.000). Conclusion This is the first prospective study comparing the MDADI and PSS questionnaires at multiple time points. Our study shows that these different instruments have a good relationship in measuring swallowing function in patients with head and neck cancer in short and medium term after treatment.