Premium
Health‐related quality of life and disease‐specific complaints among multiple myeloma patients up to 10 yr after diagnosis: results from a population‐based study using the PROFILES registry
Author(s) -
Mols Floortje,
Oerlemans Simone,
Vos Allert H.,
Koster Ad,
Verelst Silvia,
Sonneveld Pieter,
PollFranse Lonneke V.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
european journal of haematology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 84
eISSN - 1600-0609
pISSN - 0902-4441
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0609.2012.01831.x
Subject(s) - medicine , nausea , quality of life (healthcare) , population , vomiting , physical therapy , brief pain inventory , multiple myeloma , prospective cohort study , disease , chronic pain , nursing , environmental health
Background This prospective population‐based study describes health‐related quality of life ( HRQOL ) and disease‐specific complaints of patients with multiple myeloma ( MM ) up to 10 yr post‐diagnosis. Methods The Eindhoven Cancer Registry was used to select all patients diagnosed with MM from 1999 to 2010. Patients with MM completed the EORTC QLQ ‐C30 and EORTC QLQ ‐ MY 20 questionnaires at baseline ( n = 156; 74% response rate) and 1 yr later ( n = 80). The EORTC QLQ ‐C30 was also completed by an age‐ and sex‐matched normative population ( n = 500). Results Patients with MM reported statistically significant and clinically relevant worse scores on all EORTC QLQ ‐C30 scales (all P 's at least < 0.01) compared to the norm. Also, patients with MM reported a mean decrease (e.g., worsening) between baseline and 1‐yr follow‐up scores for: quality of life (mean, 68 vs. 55, respectively, P < 0.001; 74% of patients had a deteriorated score), fatigue (33 vs. 39, P < 0.05; 50%), nausea and vomiting (6.3 vs. 13, P < 0.05; 71%), pain (33 vs. 43, P < 0.05; 59%), and dyspnea (17 vs. 33, P < 0.001; 66%). The most bothering symptoms during the past week were tingling hands/feet (32%), back pain (28%), bone aches/pain (26%), pain in arm/shoulder (19%), and feeling drowsy (18%). Also, 37% worried about their future health, 34% thought about their disease, and 21% worried about dying. Conclusion Patients with MM experience a very high symptom burden and low HRQOL . Future studies should focus on possible mechanisms that can predict low HRQOL and high symptom burden in patients with MM and should investigate optimal ways to alleviate these.