Systematic Reviews of Patient-Reported Outcomes in Patients with Cancer
A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Systematic Review or Meta-Analysis in Cancer Research".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2021) | Viewed by 27440
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In recent years, the relevance of patient-reported outcomes in cancer research, as well as in other fields of medicine, has been better recognized. In fact, the definition of the real value of a treatment for patients with cancer should necessarily include the evaluation of their subjective experience.
Unfortunately, while health-related quality of life (QoL) is universally considered to be a measure of clinical benefit, its inclusion in clinical trials and in related publications remains suboptimal. Consequently, systematic reviews and meta-analyses are rarely focused on QoL and patient-reported outcomes. However, even when the experimental treatment shows a benefit in terms of overall survival, QoL results can be helpful to define the trade-off between benefits and harms, especially if the survival benefit is modest and the potential treatment-related toxicity is not negligible. In addition, QoL analysis is even more important when the interpretation of the trial is based on a surrogate endpoint (such as progression-free survival); in this case, a patient-focused assessment is crucial to define the value of a radiologically defined result.
With the aim of improving the scientific discussion about these issues and their visibility, this Special Issue will welcome contributions in the field of systematic reviews and meta-analyses focused on patient-reported outcomes and QoL in cancer research.
Prof. Dr. Massimo Di Maio
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- systematic review
- patient-reported outcomes
- cancer
- clinical trials
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