Quality-of-life concordance between patients with malignant gliomas (MG) and their caregivers.

Abstract

2041 Background: Quality of life (QOL) in patients with malignant gliomas (MG) is important. Patients often minimize many aspects of QOL; hence, caregiver input is valuable. The purpose of this study was to investigate QOL concordance between patient and caregiver, in order to identify relevant discrepancies. Methods: Patients with MG within 6 months of diagnosis or relapse were eligible for this study if they had an involved caregiver. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Brain (FACT-Br) was given to patients and caregivers at baseline and then on the day MRIs were done for tumor assessment and continued until tumor progression. Patients were asked to fill out the FACT-Br and their caregiver was asked to fill out the same questionnaire as they perceived the patient would respond. MRI was done approximately every 2 months and questionnaires were given prior to disclosure of MRI results. Results: 51 pairs of FACT-Br scales were collected over the course of the study from 19 patient- caregiver pairs. A consistent discrepancy between patient and caregiver was seen. Patients reported their overall QOL to be better than perceived by their caregivers by an average of 9.9 points on the 200 point scale (p = 0.004). This difference was observed similarly for patients with newly diagnosed and recurrent MG and their caregivers. Significant differences were found within subscales of physical (p = 0.02), emotional (p = 0.01), and functional (p = 0.02) well-being, as well as brain cancer-specific items (p = 0.03). Social well-being was the only subscale where a significant discrepancy was not noted. The average score for the FACT-General was 76.1 in this sample of MG patients, significantly lower than the national average of 80.1 across all cancers. Conclusions: Results indicate patients consistently report their QOL to be more favorable than perceived by their caregivers. This finding underscores the importance of including caregivers in clinical assessments to obtain a comprehensive view of patient QOL and functional status. Physician-caregiver communication is essential to ensure quality care for patients with MG. No significant financial relationships to disclose.