title: Electronic real-time assessment of patient-reported outcomes in routine care-first findings and experiences from the implementation in a comprehensive cancer center.
abstract: Cancer patients suffer from a variety of physical and mental complaints. Since physician assessment of symptoms seems insufficient to reveal the complete range of patients' ailments, patient-reported outcomes (PRO) have become of key importance in modern cancer treatment. The implementation and first results of a systematic electronic real-time assessment of PRO in routine care is described.
  
  
  
  Consecutive patients presenting for the first time to a German comprehensive cancer center were asked to fill in an adaptive self-administered electronic questionnaire consisting of standardized PRO measures. After completion, patient-reported data was linked to the patients' medical files for discussion in the first consultation with the treating physician. Interviews with staff were conducted to identify barriers in implementation.
  
  
  
  Out of 160 cancer patients, 126 (79 %; mean age 63 years, 67 % males) agreed to participate. The number of recruited patients increased over time. Of participating patients, 67 % provided complete information on all PRO-related scales. On average, 31 min (range 3-140) were required to fill in the questionnaire. Of participating patients, 53.0 % comprised need for psychooncological support and 62 % revealed moderate to severe psychosocial distress. The mean score for global quality of life according to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) was 55.2 (SD ±25.6).
  
  
  
  Comprehensive oncological treatment needs to consider disease symptoms, quality of life, preferences, and comorbidities of individual patients in a structured, standardized, and transparent way. Our findings indicate that an adaptive, self-administered electronic assessment tool for cancer patients to report a broad set of PRO can be feasibly implemented and is well accepted by patients in a realistic setting.
authors.affiliation: Center for Evidence Based Healthcare (ZEGV), Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.|National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Partner Site Dresden and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Freya
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Trautmann
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany. Leopold.Hentschel@uniklinikum-dresden.de.
authors.forename: Leopold
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-5792-2079
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hentschel
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Beate
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hornemann
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Anke
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rentsch
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Baumann
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ehninger
authors.affiliation: Center for Evidence Based Healthcare (ZEGV), Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Jochen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schmitt
authors.affiliation: University Cancer Center, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.|Clinic for Internal Medicine II, HELIOS Hospital Emil von Behring, Walterhöferstraße 11, 14165, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schuler
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D000071066:Patient Reported Outcome Measures; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Electronic assessment; Oncology; Patient care; Patient-reported outcomes; Quality of life; Routine care