A systematic review on patient‐reported outcomes in cancer survivors of randomised clinical trials: direction for future research

Abstract

With increasing expectations of a 5-year survival rate among cancer patients, there is growing interest in patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures, particularly measures of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in cancer practice. The purpose of this review was to explore the existing interventions for patients coping with cancer in terms of intervention type, PRO measurements and outcomes; and to identify directions for future research. Systematic review of randomised clinical trials. A systematic search of four databases was conducted to identify articles published in English or Chinese from January 2000 to July 2013. Studies were located using an electronic search, a manual search and an author search. A total of 34 articles corresponding to 33 original studies were identified and included in this review. These interventions were classified under four broad categories according to their approaches: psycho-education (15), case management (13), exercise (4) and feedback of PRO (1). The PRO measures covered different types of PRO measures, including HRQOL, functional status, symptom status, overall well-being and satisfaction with care. Positive outcomes of more than 70% (24) out of these interventions were reported. These findings highlight the significant outcomes of cancer patient interventions that applied PRO measures to evaluate their outcomes. A theory-driven and careful design of the programme should be considered in the whole process of developing, delivering and assessing the programmes. Collaboration among patients, clinicians, researchers and policy makers is crucial to ensure the development of effective and accessible interventions targeting improving cancer survivors' HRQOL.