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Development of the Berlin Symptom Checklist Ovary (BSCL-O) for the measurement of quality of life of patients with primary and recurrent ovarian cancer: results of a phase I and II study

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Abstract

Goals of work

Quality of life (Qol) represents a relevant end point in the clinical management of advanced ovarian cancer (AOC). However, there exist only a few specific instruments which have been designed for patients with ovarian cancer. The aim of this study was to develop a systematic checklist (Berlin Symptom Checklist Ovary (BSCL-O)) as an instrument of Qol for patients with AOC and to discriminate between the frequency and the importance of symptoms.

Patients and methods

The main symptoms were identified in a phase I study via free interviews of five patients with ovarian cancer (OC) as well as five medical doctors, family dependants, and care workers. In the phase II study, the capability of BSCL-O was evaluated by questionnaire-guided interviews of 200 patients with primary OC, recurrent OC, metastasized breast cancer, and benign ovarian tumors.

Main results

In phase I, 36 main symptoms were identified. In phase II, 7,200 answers from 98.5% of all patients were evaluable. Of the 36 symptoms of the BSCL-O, 23 revealed clinical relevance. There was a correlation of frequency and importance of symptoms (p < 0.05). The symptoms of the BSCL-O were deemed twice as strenuous in patients with recurrent OC.

Conclusions

The BSCL-O can measure Qol of patients with OC. The BSCL-O is being validated in a phase III study.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the patients, their family dependants, the medical doctors, and the care workers who participated in this trial. Without their enthusiastic collaboration, this work would not have been possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinic of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University Hospital Greifswald, Wollweberstr. 1, 17475, Greifswald, Germany

    Dominique Koensgen & Alexander Mustea

  2. Clinic of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Klinikum Bremen-Mitte, St.-Jürgen-Str. 1, 28177, Bremen, Germany

    Ioanna Katsares

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Campus Virchow Clinic, Charité University Hospital, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353, Berlin, Germany

    Guelten Oskay-Oezcelik, Ulla Walle, Christine Klapp, Werner Lichtenegger & Jalid Sehouli

  4. Institute of Clinical Epidemiology, Clinic for Surgery, Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin, Warener Str.7, 12683, Berlin, Germany

    Dirk Stengel

  5. Institute for Clinical Economics, University of Ulm, Frauensteige 6, 89075, Ulm, Germany

    Franz Porzsolt

Authors
  1. Dominique Koensgen
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  2. Guelten Oskay-Oezcelik
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  3. Ioanna Katsares
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  4. Ulla Walle
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  5. Christine Klapp
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  6. Alexander Mustea
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  7. Dirk Stengel
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  8. Franz Porzsolt
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  9. Werner Lichtenegger
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  10. Jalid Sehouli
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Consortia

on behalf of the Nord-Ostdeutschen Gesellschaft für Gynäkologische Onkologie (NOGGO) working group “Quality of life”

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jalid Sehouli.

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Koensgen, D., Oskay-Oezcelik, G., Katsares, I. et al. Development of the Berlin Symptom Checklist Ovary (BSCL-O) for the measurement of quality of life of patients with primary and recurrent ovarian cancer: results of a phase I and II study. Support Care Cancer 18, 931–942 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-009-0733-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-009-0733-0

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