Patient‑reported outcome measures for assessing health‑related quality of life in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: a systematic review

Lujing Xiong; Lei Liu; Yuqing Xiang; Chao Li; Wei Dai; Jinchuan Hu; Chunyan Shui; Yuqiu Zhou; Xu Wang; Yongcong Cai

doi:10.1097/JS9.0000000000001974

Patient‑reported outcome measures for assessing health‑related quality of life in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: a systematic review

Int J Surg. 2024 Jul 19. doi: 10.1097/JS9.0000000000001974. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Lujing Xiong^{1

2}, Lei Liu^{1

2}, Yuqing Xiang^{2

3}, Chao Li², Wei Dai⁴, Jinchuan Hu^{2

3}, Chunyan Shui², Yuqiu Zhou², Xu Wang², Yongcong Cai^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, 610054.
² Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Sichuan Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sichuan Cancer Hospital & Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, Affiliated Cancer Hospital of University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, 610041.
³ Graduate School of Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, 610500.
⁴ Department of Thoracic Surgery, Sichuan Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sichuan Cancer Hospital & Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, Affiliated Cancer Hospital of University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, 610041.

PMID: 39028114
DOI: 10.1097/JS9.0000000000001974

Abstract

Background: Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) have become important tools for evaluating health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). While there are many PROMs available to measure HRQOL, there is a lack of a comprehensive overview of these PROMs. Therefore, we aimed to systematically review and categorize all PROMs that have been used to measure HRQOL in patients with DTC.

Materials and methods: After determining the search strategy and identifying inclusion and exclusion criteria, articles were searched in PubMed and EMBASE from January 1900 to September 2023. Information on PROMs from the included studies, such as development language, target population, (sub)scales name, number of items per (sub)scale, completion time, and validation, was extracted and synthesized. The frequency with which PROMs were utilized in the included studies was also graphed. After innovatively classifying PROMs as five categories, all of the included PROMs were allocated to their respective categories.

Results: A total of 330 articles fulfilled all of the criteria, and they utilized 96 different PROMs to measure HRQOL in DTC patients. The 96 PROMs were classified into five categories, namely universal PROMs (16/96), DTC-related PROMs (11/96), radioiodine-related PROMs (4/96), operation-related PROMs (37/96), and psychology-related PROMs (28/96). Among them, some PROMs were the frequently employed PROMs to assess diverse aspects of HRQOL in patients with DTC.

Conclusion: A large number of PROMs are available for patients with DTC, which evaluate all aspects of HRQOL. Combining the relevant information and frequency of PROMs utilization, it can provide convenience and reference for researchers to select PROMs across different categories. However, a more detailed critical appraisal of the PROMs used in various clinical scenarios is required. Additionally, PROMs usage frequency in previous studies can indirectly indicate the comprehensiveness or gaps in HRQOL aspects studied, guiding further review or research.