Cancer-related symptom assessment in France: validation of the French M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory.

This multicenter study was intended to validate the French version of the M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI-Fr) in French cancer patients (n=162) with solid tumors or hematological malignancies. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) was used as a part of the validation. Factor analysis showed three underlying constructs for symptom items: general symptoms (pain, fatigue, disturbed sleep, shortness of breath, drowsiness, dry mouth, and numbness or tingling items); emotional and cognitive components (distress, sadness, and remembering items); and a gastrointestinal component (nausea, vomiting, and lack of appetite items), with Cronbach's alphas of 0.79, 0.73, and 0.71, respectively. Convergent validity was established by comparing MDASI-Fr items with the EORTC QLQ-C30 scale and the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI). Overall, the 19-item MDASI-Fr score correlated well with the QLQ-C30 global health status, and the pain item of the MDASI-Fr was highly correlated with the short form of the BPI. The most prevalent symptoms were fatigue, distress, dry mouth, and pain. Twenty-five percent of patients reported moderate or severe pain (numeric rating scale >4 on 0-10 severity ratings). Physician ratings of global change on a second visit were significantly associated with changes in patient ratings on the MDASI-Fr, supporting the sensitivity of the measure. Symptoms interfered most with work and general activity. The MDASI-Fr is a valid and reliable tool for measuring symptom severity and interference in French cancer patients.

Guirimand F ，Buyck JF ，Lauwers-Allot E ，Revnik J ，Kerguen T ，Aegerter P ，Brasseur L ，Cleeland CS ... -  《-》

Cancer-related symptom assessment in Russia: validation and utility of the Russian M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory.

Ivanova MO ，Ionova TI ，Kalyadina SA ，Uspenskaya OS ，Kishtovich AV ，Guo H ，Mendoza TR ，Novik A ，Cleeland CS ，Wang XS ... -  《JOURNAL OF PAIN AND SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT》

New insights in symptom assessment: the Chinese Versions of the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale Short Form (MSAS-SF) and the Condensed MSAS (CMSAS).

Lam WW ，Law CC ，Fu YT ，Wong KH ，Chang VT ，Fielding R ... -  《-》

Validation and application of the Arabic version of the M. D. Anderson symptom inventory in Moroccan patients with cancer.

Little is known about symptom burden-a concept encompassing both symptom severity and the degree of symptom interference with daily living-in patients with cancer in Morocco or other countries with Arabic-speaking populations. The goal of this study was to psychometrically validate the Arabic version of the M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI-A), a tool for measuring multiple symptoms in patients with cancer, and to test its utility in a sample of patients with late-stage cancer in Morocco. The MDASI-A was developed by standard forward-backward translation of the English MDASI. We used nonidiomatic Arabic in the MDASI-A to enhance its possible usefulness for all Arabic-speaking patients with cancer. One hundred sixty-five Arabic-speaking patients with various cancer types were recruited from a city hospital in Rabat, Morocco. The MDASI-A was administered by interview, as only 5% of the patients had a high school education. Psychometric analysis demonstrated acceptable internal consistency, with Cronbach alpha values of 0.85 for all 19 items, 0.78 for symptom severity items, and 0.79 for interference items; known-group validity was demonstrated by significant differences in mean symptom severity and interference between patients with good vs. poor performance status. All patients had moderate to severe pain and were taking pain medications. Additional severe symptoms included fatigue, lack of appetite, and disturbed sleep. Patients with gastrointestinal or gynecological cancer reported relatively more symptom severity than patients with breast or lung cancer. Poor performance status, male gender, and current infection were significant predictors of high symptom interference (R(2)=0.48, P<0.05). The MDASI-A is a valid and reliable patient-reported outcome instrument that can be used to assess Moroccan Arabic-speaking cancer patients' multiple symptoms. Its utility for use in other Arab countries needs to be tested.

Nejmi M ，Wang XS ，Mendoza TR ，Gning I ，Cleeland CS ... -  《-》

Assessment of change of quality of life in terminally ill patients under cancer pain management using the EORTC Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) in a Korean sample.

The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) is composed of 5 multi-item function scales and 9 symptom scales. The Korean EORTC QLQ-C30 was drawn up by the EORTC itself. However, its validity and reliability in the palliative care has not been reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate the practicality, reliability, and validity of the Korean EORTC QLQ-C30 in terminally ill patients under cancer pain management. The study was conducted from March 2003 to February 2004. The main sample consisted of 159 patients with cancer-related pain during the past week. To assess the severity and impact of pain, the patients completed the Korean version of the Brief Pain Inventory. We enrolled the patients with substantial pain who rated their worst pain as 5 or higher. The participants reported their worst pain of the previous week using the Brief Pain Inventory and were given the EORTC QLQ-C30 to fill out. Two weeks later, the patients were asked to complete the questionnaire a second time while they were on cancer pain management. The questionnaire was well accepted among terminally ill cancer patients. The scale reliability was very good [Cronbach's alpha: 0.80-0.91 (before treatment), 0.81-0.92 (on treatment)], except for cognitive function. In the initial measure of the QLQ-C30 for each patient, clinical validity was found for all the functional scales using the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status Scale. Ninety-eight patients had improved cancer pain severity, 17 patients had deteriorated cancer pain, and 29 patients had unchanged pain. The differences in QLQ-C30 scores were compared between the improved and nonimproved cancer pain group. Statistically significant between-group differences over time were observed for the scales of global quality of life, fatigue, pain, nausea, and sleep disturbance. Cronbach's alpha coefficient to judge internal consistency was very good except for cognitive functioning. The Korean QLQ-C30 has a strong validity in functional scales. Global quality of life, pain, fatigue, nausea, and sleep disturbance were improved after cancer pain management. These results support that the QLQ-C30 is a reliable and valid measure of quality of life in Korean cancer patients receiving cancer pain management. We consider that the QLQ-C30 can be used effectively in the palliative care settings in order to assess the effects of cancer pain management on quality of life of advanced-stage cancer patients.

Park KU 《-》