How Well Do Doctors Judge Quality of Life in Lung Cancer Patients?
Author Information
Author(s): J. Regan, J. Yarnold, P.W. Jones, N.T. Cooke
Primary Institution: The Royal Marsden Hospital
Hypothesis
How do physician assessments of treatment outcomes correlate with patient perceptions in lung cancer?
Conclusion
Physician assessments may be valid endpoints for comparing palliative radiotherapy schedules in lung cancer, but doctors struggle to judge overall life quality accurately.
Supporting Evidence
- Patients and physicians had good agreement on specific physical symptoms.
- Doctors were poor judges of life quality at presentation.
- Physicians could identify changes in overall quality of life after treatment.
- The study included a representative subset of patients from a larger trial.
Takeaway
Doctors and patients often agree on physical symptoms, but doctors are not good at judging how patients feel overall. After treatment, doctors can sometimes tell if patients are feeling better or worse.
Methodology
The study involved 40 lung cancer patients who completed questionnaires assessing their symptoms and quality of life, which were compared to physician assessments.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in physician assessments due to lack of awareness of patient self-ratings.
Limitations
The study was limited by the short follow-up time due to patient mortality.
Participant Demographics
33 males and 7 females, median age 68 years, range 46-82 years.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
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