Electronic patient-reported outcome assessment at inpatient admission: a descriptive analysis of real-world data for 1423 radiotherapy patients

Abstract

Patient-reported outcomes (PRO) capture patients’ self-reported and treatment-related experiences, including functional impairment, symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Although PRO have shown benefits in many studies and are recommended by guidelines, systematic PRO assessment is still rarely integrated into routine cancer care. This paper describes results of the long-term implementation of electronic PRO assessment (ePRO) in the routine workflow of a radiation oncology inpatient clinic by analyzing patients’ HRQOL at admission. Admission ePRO included the EORTC QLQ-C30. PRO data were analyzed descriptively and stratified by sex, age, and primary tumor diagnosis. The sample included 1,423 patients. More than half reported clinically important burden in physical and emotional functioning and fatigue. Male patients tended to report better functioning and lower symptom burden. Older patients reported greater burden in physical functioning, appetite loss, and constipation but less burden in social functioning and financial problems. Global health status showed little to no differences by sex, age, or tumor diagnosis. The analyses showed substantial self-reported functional impairment and symptom burden at admission in inpatient radiation oncology and highlight the value of ePRO for identifying needs early, when patients’ clinical status is not yet well known to the care team. At the organizational level, these results can help set priorities for supportive care during hospitalization and support more efficient resource allocation. Not applicable, the analysis used only PRO data collected as part of routine care in the inpatient radiation oncology clinic (see also the declaration of no objection).