Minimally important differences for interpreting European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 scores in patients with head and neck cancer

Musoro, Jammbe Z.;Coens, Corneel;Singer, Susanne;Tribius, Silke;Bottomley, Andrew;et.al.
(2020) Head & Neck : journal for the sciences and specialities of the head and neck — Vol. 42, n° 11, p. 3141-3152 (2020)

Files

hed26363.pdf
  • Open Access
  • Adobe PDF
  • 1.21 MB
Download

Details

Authors
  • Musoro, Jammbe Z.orcid-logo
    Author
  • Coens, Corneel
    Author
  • Singer, Susanneorcid-logo
    Author
  • Tribius, Silke
    Author
  • Machiels, Jean-PascalUCLouvain
    Author
  • Bottomley, Andrew
    Author
Show more
Abstract
(en) BACKGROUND: We aimed to estimate minimally important difference (MID) for interpreting group-level change over time for European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) scores in head and neck cancer. METHODS: Data were derived retrospectively from two published EORTC trials. Clinical anchors were selected using correlation strength and clinical plausibility of the given anchor/QLQ-C30 scale pair. MIDs for within-group and between-group change were estimated via the mean change method and linear regression, respectively. Distribution-based MIDs were also examined. MIDs for two of the scales, dyspnea and nausea/vomiting, are more uncertain considering their low correlations with the anchors. RESULTS: Anchor-based MIDs could be determined for deterioration in 7 of the 14 QLQ-C30 scales assessed, and in 3 scales for improvement. MIDs varied by scale, direction of change, and anchor. Absolute MID values ranged from 5 to 15 points for within-group change and 4 to 12 for between-group change. Most MIDs were within 4 to 10 points. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings, if confirmed, will aid interpreting changes in selected QLQ-C30 scale scores over time and inform sample size calculations in future clinical trials in head and neck cancer.
Affiliations

Citations

  • APA
  • Chicago
  • FWB

Musoro, J. Z., Coens, C., Singer, S., Tribius, S., Oosting, S. F., Groenvold, M., Simon, C., Machiels, J.-P., Grégoire, V., Velikova, G., Cocks, K., Sprangers, M. A. G., King, M. T., & Bottomley, A. (2020). Minimally important differences for interpreting European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 scores in patients with head and neck cancer. Head & Neck : journal for the sciences and specialities of the head and neck, 42(11), 3141-3152. https://doi.org/10.1002/hed.26363 (Original work published 2020)