Lung cancer patients’ perspectives on quality of life

2021-09-23

New treatments like immunotherapy and targeted therapy have drastically increased the number of options available to lung cancer patients and their treating physicians. But with uncertainties about their varying benefits and side-effects, there are questions to answer about their impact on patients’ health-related quality of life. PREFER researchers have investigated what patients prefer, and what matters most to them.  

A recent PREFER publication provides an in-depth analysis of patient insights into the impact of lung cancer treatment on their health related quality of life. The results show that patients’ concern extends beyond physical aspects like nausea, fatigue, and pain. They also worry about treatment effects on their mental health and future health. About negative impact on their wellbeing and about risks of having less autonomy and independence after their treatment is complete.

But the lung cancer patients also highlighted their concern about potential negative impact on their ability to interact socially. Underlining the importance of being able to communicate with healthcare providers and interact socially with friends, family, and peers.

Pharmaceutical companies, the agencies that approve medicines and those that decide what becomes available to patients are all looking for ways to include the patient perspective in their decision-making. Patient preference studies is a way to collect patient input in a systematic way.

“For example, this study illustrates that patients’ focus is not only on physical aspects related to their treatment, but also value the impact on their daily life in terms of psychological and social wellbeing. Providing the well-rounded image of their health-related quality of life needed to enable patient-centric decision-making,” says Rosanne Janssens, PhD student at KU Leuven and one of the authors of the recent Frontiers in Pharmacology publication.

By Anna Holm

Janssens, R. Arnou, R, Schoefs, E., et al, Key Determinants of Health-Related Quality of Life Among Advanced Lung Cancer Patients: A Qualitative Study in Belgium and Italy, Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2021:4;710518, DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.710518

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Last modified: 2021-11-10