Patient-Reported Physical Functioning May Predict HCT Outcomes

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

Patient-reported outcomes have the potential to improve prognostication in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), a new study published online ahead of print in the journal Cancer has shown.

Although patient-reported outcomes predict mortality in multiple cancers, there are few studies assessing their value in HSCT.

Therefore, researchers sought to determine whether pre-HSCT patient-reported outcomes, particularly physical health, predict survival among patients undergoing autologous or allogeneic HSCT.

For the analysis, the researchers analyzed data from pre-HSCT patient-reported outcomes that were reported by 336 allogeneic and 310 autolgous HSCT recipients. Participants were enrolled in a larger study that included a broad representation of patients who underwent HSCT in the United States.

Results showed that physical functioning independently predicted overall mortality among allogeneic HSCT recipients. Researchers found that early post-HSCT declines in physical functioning were associated with higher overall and treatment-related mortality.

The authors recommend that patient-reported outcomes be routinely collected prior to HSCT, and that patient-reported outcomes be considered for incorporation into risk adjustment for quality reporting.