title: Current status of health outcome assessment of medical treatment in breast cancer.
abstract: Recent research has shown the importance of the patient's point of view on the goals of medical care, and now health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) has become an important endpoint of clinical studies. However, as HR-QOL is essentially a subjective, personal concept determined from the viewpoint of the patient, it is fundamentally important to understand the concept and use the HR-QOL assessment, to express both the subjective and qualitative concept of HR-QOL in an objective and quantitative way that meets the patient's true needs, and also to obtain high-quality information about HR-QOL. In this article, we describe the concept of HR-QOL, the purpose of HR-QOL measurement, the approach to the HR-QOL assessment, instruments used in the measurement of HR-QOL, and general principles of HR-QOL measurements. We also review the current status of HR-QOL assessment of medical treatment in breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: Division of Surgery, Breast Oncology, Nyuwakai Oikawa Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan. kurochan@dd.iij4u.or.jp
authors.forename: Katsumasa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kuroi
authors.forename: Kojiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shimozuma
authors.forename: Shozo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ohsumi
authors.forename: Hirohisa
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.forename: Michikazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ono
mesh_terms: D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires