Measuring physical symptoms in children and adolescents with cancer
- Authors:
- Linder, L. A.
- Abstract:
- The purpose of this review of the literature was to evaluate measures of physical symptoms in children and adolescents with cancer or those having completed treatment for cancer. Objectives included identification of instruments measuring physical symptoms, a description of how symptoms were conceptualized, description of reliability and validity measures, and assessment of developmental appropriateness for the intended age groups. The electronic databases Medline, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), and PsychLit were searched. Reports of cancer symptoms published in the English language between January 1988 and October 2003 were selected. Inclusion criteria were study samples consisting of children or adolescents with cancer and use of a tool developed for use in children or adolescents with cancer in which physical symptoms comprised a portion of the total measure. Nineteen studies met criteria for review and 23 instruments were identified. Five studies reported measures of the single symptoms of nausea and vomiting and fatigue; 9 studies reported measures of multiple symptoms. An additional 5 studies reported physical symptoms as a component of quality of life measures. Initial psychometric evaluation of these instruments demonstrates acceptable reliability and validity. Areas for future research include application of these measures in specific populations, intervention-based studies, and outcome-focused studies.
- DOI:
- URL:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15681978
- Journal:
- Cancer Nurs
- issn:
- 0162-220X (Print)
- Publication year:
- 2005
- pages:
- 16-26
- Symptom status:
- Physical state
- Age:
- Children (0-18)
- Disease:
- Neoplasms and related symptoms
- PRO / non-PRO:
- Non-patient Reported Outcome
Patient Reported Outcome - Type of measurement instrument:
- 1 - Questionnaires
6 - Clinical rating scales
7 - Observations - Instrument:
- About My Illness Scale
Adapted Rhodes Index of Nausea and Vomiting for Pediatrics by child (Chinese translation)
Adapted Rhodes Index of Nausea and Vomiting for Pediatrics by parent (Chinese translation)
BASES - Behavioral, Affective, and Somatic Experiences Scale (versions: BASES-P; BASES-C; BASES-Nurse)
CFS - Childhood Fatigue Scale
Childhood Cancer Stressors Inventory
Children’s Adjustment To Cancer Index
Criteria for Nausea and Vomiting from the National Cancer Institute
MFS Ca Module - Multidimensional Fatigue Scale Cancer Module
MMQL - Minneapolis-Manchester Quality of Life (Versions: MMQL-AF - Adolescent Form; MMQL-YF - Youth Form)
MSAS 10-18 - Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale 10-18
MSAS 7-12 - Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale 7-12
Nausea/vomiting vignettes with associated Likert-type scales measuring frequency and severity of symptoms
PCQL - Pediatric Cancer Quality of Life Inventory (versions: PCQL-32; PCQL-Modular Approach)
PedsQL 4.0 Generic Core Scales - Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Generic Core Scales (versions: PedsQL 4.0 SF15; PedsQL 4.0 TODDLER; PedsQL 4.0 YOUNG CHILD; PedsQL 4.0 CHILD; PedsQL 4.0 TEENAGER; PedsQL 4.0 SF15 Toddler/Young Child/Child/Teen)
PedsQL - Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (versions: PedsQL VAS)
PFS - Parent Fatigue Scale
Physical Symptom Inventory
RMH-PQLQ - Royal Marsden Hospital Paediatric Quality of Life Questionnaire [alias: RMH-PO-QOL]
SDS - Symptom Distress Scale
SFS - Staff Fatigue Scale
Vomiting Frequency Scale