Symptom Burden in Patients With Cancer- and Treatment-Related Skin Problems

Objectives: The objective of this study is to develop a valid and reliable measure of the symptom burden experienced by patients with cancer experiencing disease-related skin problems and to delineate this burden over time. The Primary Aim is to develop and validate an M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI) module (the MDASI-Derm), compliant with FDA standards for patient-reported outcomes (PROs), to measure the severity of multiple symptoms and the impact of these symptoms on daily functioning in patients with cancer-related skin problems. We hypothesize that the MDASI-Derm will be valid and reliable for measuring the severity of multiple symptoms and the impact of these symptoms on daily functioning in patients with cancer-related skin problems. The Secondary Aims are: 1. to develop a detailed description of the severity and interference with daily activities of symptoms experienced by patients with cancer-related skin problems; 2. to assess the impact of symptom severity on standard function and quality of life (QOL) measures including both quantitative (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group \[ECOG\] Performance Status, single-item QOL, and Skindex-16 scales) and qualitative measures (patient interviews); 3. to evaluate the MDASI-Derm as an estimate of functional status and QOL in patients with cancer-related skin problems; 4. to identify common clusters of symptoms and symptom patterns occurring over multiple measurement time points in patients with cancer-related skin problems; 5. to define the qualitative symptom experience of patients with cancer-related skin problems; 6. to explore the feasibility of the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system in measuring symptom severity and interference with daily activities over time in patients with cancer-related skin problems.

Sex

All

Minimum age

18 Years

Inclusion Criteria:

1. 18 years of age or older
2. Ability to read and speak English
3. Receiving treatment and/or follow up at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
4. Residing where IVR service is available (Validation part of study only)
5. Rating of skin problem at its worse in the last 24-hours of at least 1 on a 0 to 10 scale where 0 is no skin problem and 10 is the skin problem as bad as can be imagined
6. Written consent to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Medical condition (impaired speech that would preclude taking part in a 30 minute interview, deafness that would impair the ability to use the IVR system) or impaired performance status that would preclude participation in the study
2. Diagnosis of active psychosis or severe cognitive impairment as determined by physician
3. Active treatment (systemic drug therapy or radiation therapy) for a second malignancy