Health status and health-related quality of life in adolescent survivors of cancer in childhood.
OBJECTIVE
Adolescent survivors of cancer in childhood face particular challenges due to their maturational trajectory, including psychosocial adjustments, self-help skills, intellectual functioning and socialization. To better understand these, we assessed the health status and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in a 20-year cohort of such survivors in a single institution.


METHODS
Health status and HRQL were measured with a self-complete questionnaire from the Health Utilities Index (HUI) family of multi-attribute, preference-based instruments that provide utility scores for single attributes and overall HRQL.


RESULTS
Eighty-four (42 males, 42 females) of 129 eligible subjects (65%) participated. More than 80% of the respondents reported some form of morbidity. Overall HRQL utility scores were lower for both the males and females than for corresponding members of the Canadian general population. Female survivors self-reported a significantly greater burden of morbidity (mean overall HUI2/HUI3 scores: .83/.73 vs. .90/.84 for males, p < .02), which was most evident in the attributes of emotion and cognition.


CONCLUSIONS
The majority of adolescent survivors of cancer in childhood carry a morbidity burden into their teen and young adult years. These findings may guide the support required by this population.
Grant
Judith
J
Faculty of Medicine, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland.
Cranston
Amy
A
Horsman
John
J
Furlong
William
W
Barr
Neil
N
Findlay
Sheri
S
Barr
Ronald
R
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms; D011788:Quality of Life; D012737:Sex Factors; D017741:Survivors