OBJECTIVES

: Although long-term monitoring of symptoms and HRQoL is associated with survival in cancer patients, HRQoL assessment in clinical practice is suffering from a lack of a standardised approach and from logistical constraints. This post-hoc analysis compared patient and clinician perspectives of HRQoL management among cancer patients.

METHODS

: Findings from a cross-sectional online survey with immunotherapy-experienced cancer patients and from a Delphi approach conducted with French clinicians managing predominantly lung cancer patients were compared to explore the concordance between patients and clinicians perspectives.

RESULTS

: Eighty-two patients (mean age = 57 years; 56% male; 41% with lung cancer) who completed the survey in 2018, and 60 clinicians (13 oncologists, 43 pulmonologists, 4 radiotherapists) who participated in a 3-round Delphi approach in 2019 were considered for this analysis. The proportion of patients rating HRQoL management discussions as being important ranged from 77% to 92% throughout the different times of the care pathway. Similarly, 70% to 100% of clinicians recognized the importance of HRQoL management at all times.

Patients and clinicians considered all HRQoL dimensions to be critical and felt that the HRQoL management should be multidimensional. Patients reported that HRQoL discussions occurred mostly during follow-up visits (65%) and focused mainly on symptoms (77%) and physical well-being (69%). Only 55% of patients were satisfied with HRQoL discussions. Patients identified oncologists (66%) and general practitioners (54%) as key players in resolving gaps in their expectations related to HRQoL management. The majority of patients and clinicians suggested a multidisciplinary team to handle HRQoL management. There was no consensus among clinicians regarding recommendations on HRQoL assessment conditions (target patients, tools) in daily practice

CONCLUSIONS

: Patients and clinicians value the importance of integrating HRQoL management into routine practice throughout the care pathway. This post-hoc analysis identified gaps for a stronger integration of HRQoL management into clinical practice.