Quality of life in terminally ill cancer patients: contributors and content validity of instruments

Abstract

Over the last few decades, improvement in the quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients has received a lot of attention in oncology. This study aims to further explore what factors terminally ill cancer patients report as influencing their QOL. Content analysis of 110 terminally ill cancer patients' answers to the McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire open-ended question was performed. Negative and positive factors reported by patients as having an impact on their QOL were identified then categorized into eight domains: "physical condition and symptoms," "psychological status," "existential," "relationships and support," "quality of care," "physical environment and living facilities," "hobbies and daily activities," and "finances." The "physical condition and symptoms" and "relationships and support" domains were the two most often described by participants as important to their QOL. The results support previous work identifying domains important to the QOL of terminally ill patients with cancer, but they also identify "finances" as a new domain. Based on these findings, we suggest including "finances" in QOL instruments for the terminally ill as an experimental domain.