Objective: To investigate the relationship among international scales for quality of life (QOL), physical performance assessment and Lung Cancer Symptoms Lists of Traditional Chinese Medicine (LCSL) from the viewpoint of clinical observation.
Methods: QOL of 363 patients with lung cancer was estimated with two international scales, the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer QOL Questionnaire LC-43 (EORTC QLQ-LC43) and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy General and Lung (FACT-L). In the same time, scores calculated by Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS), East Cooperative Oncology Group Status (ECOG) and LCSL were recorded. Correlation and consistency among them were analyzed.
Results: EORTC QLQ-C43, FACT-L were correlated with KPS, ECOG and LCSL, but the correlation coefficient was small. All these indexes were consistent.
Conclusion: QOL should be assessed by QOL questionnaire, not by physical performance indexes, although they can be the simply forecast indexes of QOL. There is certain consistency between LCSL, QOL and physical performance.