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Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

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Abstract

Purpose

Due to its clinical course and often-late detection, many patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer (mPC) experience poor quality of life (QoL). This pilot project assessed real-world QoL in patients with mPC at different stages of treatment.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the following groups of patients with mPC: before initiation of first-line (1L) chemotherapy (no treatment); with partial response (PR) or stable disease (SD) upon receipt of ≥3 cycles of 1L nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine (nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine PR or SD); and with disease progression during ≥1L chemotherapy and not currently receiving nab-paclitaxel (≥1L PD). Eligible participants completed three QoL instruments, EORTC QLQ-C30, the pancreatic cancer module of EORTC QLQ-PAN26, and the EQ-5D, during their clinical visits at 14 clinics across the USA.

Results

Demographic characteristics were similar among groups (no treatment, n = 29; nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine PR or SD, n = 26; ≥1L PD, n = 17). Patients in the nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine PR or SD group had lower mean pain scores by EORTC-QLQ-C30 (27.6 vs 47.1; P = 0.02) and lower mean pancreatic pain scores by EORTC-QLQ-PAN26 (27.9 vs 45.4; P = 0.02) compared with the no treatment group. The groups did not differ significantly in QoL as measured by the EQ-5D.

Conclusions

Patients who experienced PR or SD with 1L nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine had improved general and pancreatic pain scores and no clinically meaningful deterioration in QoL compared with patients who had not yet initiated chemotherapy.

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Acknowledgements

Medical writing assistance was provided by Nathan Hutcheson, PhD, MediTech Media, funded by Celgene Corporation. The author is fully responsible for the content and editorial decisions for this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Virginia Mason Medical Center, 1100 Ninth Ave, Seattle, Washington, 38101, USA

    Vincent Picozzi

  2. Market Access Solutions, Raritan, NJ, USA

    Siva Narayanan

  3. Celgene Corporation, Summit, NJ, USA

    X. Henry Hu

  4. North Shore Hematology Oncology Associates Cancer Center, Setauket, NY, USA

    Jeffrey Vacirca

Authors
  1. Vincent Picozzi
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  2. Siva Narayanan
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  3. X. Henry Hu
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  4. Jeffrey Vacirca
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Vincent Picozzi.

Ethics declarations

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Disclosures

VP: honoraria, Novocure

SN: stock ownership, GSK, research funding Celgene, GSK, Vertex, Allergan

HH: employment and stock ownership, Celgene

JV: honoraria, Luipold, consultant, AMAG, Millennium

Additional information

Previous or duplicate publication: Presented as posters at the 2016 ESMO 18th World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer (June 29–July 2); Barcelona, Spain.

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Picozzi, V., Narayanan, S., Henry Hu, X. et al. Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer. J Gastrointest Canc 48, 103–109 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12029-016-9902-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12029-016-9902-9

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