Aaronson 1993: the EORTC QLQ-C30 quality of life questionnaire
The 30-question form that lets cancer trials measure how patients feel and function, tested first in lung cancer patients across 13 countries and now used in thousands of studies.
Overview
Aaronson and the EORTC Study Group on Quality of Life designed a core questionnaire for use in international cancer trials and tested it in 305 patients with non-resectable lung cancer in 13 countries before and during treatment. The QLQ-C30 covers five functioning scales (physical, role, cognitive, emotional and social), symptom scales for fatigue, pain and nausea and vomiting, single items for other common symptoms and financial impact, and a global health and quality of life scale. Its scales showed acceptable reliability, distinguished patients by performance status and weight loss, and changed with clinical status over time.
- Field-tested in 305 lung cancer patients from 13 countries, before and during treatment.
- Thirty items forming five functioning scales, three symptom scales, six single items and a global quality of life scale.
- Scales were reliable, distinguished clinically distinct patient groups and responded to change in clinical status.
The QLQ-C30 made patient-reported quality of life a standard trial endpoint and is the instrument behind many of the quality of life claims on drug labels and in health technology assessments. Cancer-specific modules were later added on top of the core questionnaire.
- Validated first in lung cancer; later modules extend it to other cancers.
- Quality of life data in trials are often incomplete because sicker patients stop filling in forms.