title: Longitudinal quality of life in low-income men in a state-funded prostate cancer treatment program.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate longitudinal changes in disease-specific health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among a cohort of low-income men treated for prostate cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three hundred fifty-seven participants in a state-funded program that provides free prostate cancer treatment to uninsured, low-income men completed written surveys and telephone interviews containing validated measures of general and disease-specific HRQOL. Assessments were made at study enrollment and at subsequent times. Determinants of change were identified with repeated-measures analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found a significant interaction between the acute surgical treatment effects and time of assessment. Men exposed longer to the program's supportive and educational interventions reported less severe declines in post-operative urinary and bowel HRQOL than others.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Demographic covariates predicted general and disease-specific domains of HRQOL. Among patients treated with surgery, longer duration of pre-treatment program enrollment was associated with better outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1738, USA.
authors.forename: Mary Wassel
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Zavala
authors.forename: Sally L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Maliski
authors.forename: Lorna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Arlene
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fink
authors.forename: Mark S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Litwin
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D054526:Men's Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000458:organization & administration; D011203:Poverty; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen