The Myeloma Patient Outcome Scale is the first quality of life tool developed for clinical use and validated in patients with follicular lymphoma.
OBJECTIVE
The development of novel agents and an ageing population has led to an increasing number of patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) living longer with their disease. Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is a priority for patients and should guide clinical decisions. The Myeloma Patient Outcome Scale (MyPOS), originally developed for myeloma, was validated in a cross-sectional survey recruiting 124 FL patients.


METHODS
Content and construct validity, structural validity using confirmatory factor analyses, reliability and acceptability were evaluated.


RESULTS
Three subscales were indicated: symptoms and function, emotional response, and healthcare support. MyPOS symptom and function scores were higher (worse) in participants with poorer ECOG performance status (F=26.2, P<.000) and discriminated between patients on and off treatment. Good convergent and discriminant validity in comparison to the EORTC-QLQ-C30 and FACT-Lym were demonstrated. Internal consistency was good; α coefficient 0.70-0.95 for the total MyPOS score and subscales.


CONCLUSIONS
The MyPOS is valid, reliable and acceptable, and can be used to support clinical care of FL patients. This is the first measurement tool developed specially for use in clinical practice that has been validated for use in people with FL. Further longitudinal validation is now required to support its use in outcome measurement.
Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, Department of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation, Cicely Saunders Institute, King's College London, London, UK.
Joanna M
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6375-0023
JM
Davies
St. Joseph's Hospice, London, UK.
Thomas R
TR
Osborne
Department of Palliative Care, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Polly M
PM
Edmonds
Department of Haematological Medicine, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Steve A
SA
Schey
Department of Haematological Medicine, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Steve
S
Devereux
Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, Department of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation, Cicely Saunders Institute, King's College London, London, UK.
Irene J
IJ
Higginson
Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, Department of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation, Cicely Saunders Institute, King's College London, London, UK.|Department of Palliative Medicine, Munich University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
Christina
C
Ramsenthaler
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008224:Lymphoma, Follicular / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
Follicular lymphoma; factor analysis; non-Hodgkin lymphoma; psychometrics; quality of life; questionnaire validation