Patient satisfaction with quality of life as a prognostic indicator in ovarian cancer patients treated in an integrative treatment setting

Abstract

Extensive data show that quality of life (QoL) tools measuring the activities of daily life provide prognostic information in cancer. Ferrans and Powers Quality of Life Index (QLI) is an instrument measuring patients' satisfaction with their life. This study evaluated the association between QLI and survival in ovarian cancer. We examined a consecutive case series of 90 patients with histologically confirmed stage I-IV ovarian cancer treated at Cancer Treatment Centers of America. QLI measures overall QoL and QoL in four major subscales: Health and Physical, Social and Economic, Psychological and Spiritual, and Family. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate survival. Multivariate Cox regression analyses were then performed to evaluate the joint prognostic significance of QoL and clinical factors. The Health and Physical subscale was marginally statistically significant (p = .08) after controlling for stage at diagnosis, prior treatment history, and other QLI subscales. Our study has demonstrated no statistically significant prognostic association of patient satisfaction with QoL, as measured by the QLI, with survival in ovarian cancer.