Palliative Care Research Unit, Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine GP, Bispebjerg & Frederiksberg Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Bispebjerg Bakke 23B, 2400, Copenhagen, NV, Denmark.
Quality of Life Department, European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Brussels, Belgium.
Qual Life Res. 2023 Jul;32(7):2037-2045. doi: 10.1007/s11136-023-03373-6. Epub 2023 Feb 28.
The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Group has developed item banks covering the 14 domains of the EORTC QLQ-C30 quality of life questionnaire. These allow for dynamic assessment and for forming population/study specific static short forms. To simplify selection of relevant short forms, we here present a portfolio of standard short forms with measurement properties optimized for different populations.
For each domain, a brief and a long version were constructed for each of three populations having mild, moderate, and severe symptoms, respectively. The most informative items were prioritised while also taking content into consideration. All short forms included at least one QLQ-C30 item. The measurement precision/power of the short forms was compared to the corresponding QLQ-C30 scales using simulations.
In total, 84 short forms were constructed. The brief versions included 3-5 items each, the long versions 5-9 items. Estimated sample size savings using the suggested short forms while maintaining the same power as with the QLQ-C30 ranged 3-50% across domains with median savings of 19% (brief versions) and 28% (long versions), respectively.
The suggested short forms allow for simple selection of items particularly relevant for patients with mild, moderate, or severe symptoms, respectively. They facilitate the use of smaller samples without loss of power compared to the QLQ-C30 scales. The suggested short forms may be used as they are or adapted to the specific aims of individual studies/settings.
欧洲癌症研究与治疗组织（EORTC）生活质量小组开发了涵盖 EORTC QLQ-C30 生活质量问卷 14 个领域的项目库。这些项目库允许进行动态评估，并形成人群/研究特定的静态短表。为了简化相关短表的选择，我们在此提出了一组标准短表，这些短表的测量特性针对不同人群进行了优化。
对于每个领域，我们为分别有轻度、中度和重度症状的三组人群分别构建了简短和长版本。在考虑内容的同时，优先选择信息量最大的项目。所有短表都至少包含一个 QLQ-C30 项目。使用模拟比较短表与相应的 QLQ-C30 量表的测量精度/能力。
总共构建了 84 个短表。简短版本每个包含 3-5 个项目，长版本包含 5-9 个项目。使用建议的短表在保持与 QLQ-C30 相同的功效的情况下，估计在各领域节省的样本量为 3-50%，中位数节省分别为 19%（简短版本）和 28%（长版本）。
建议的短表允许简单选择特别适合轻度、中度或重度症状患者的项目。与 QLQ-C30 量表相比，它们可以在不损失功效的情况下，使用更小的样本。建议的短表可以直接使用，也可以根据个别研究/环境的具体目标进行调整。
