Investigation for the development of a symptom assessment scale for children with cancer

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K19360
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 58010:Medical management and medical sociology-related
• Research Institution: Kobe University (2022); Jichi Medical University (2019-2021)
• Principal Investigator: Hayase Tomomi 神戸大学, 医学部附属病院, 特定助教 (50433587)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 小児がん / Quality of Life / Patient Rported Outcome / 緩和支持療法

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, the Japanese version of the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS-J), a symptom assessment scale for pediatric cancer patients was developed according to the translation process for scale development and evaluated its reliability and validity.
Field testing was conducted at 11 pediatric oncology centers in Japan. Responses were obtained from 238 caregivers of children with cancer aged 2-18 years, 88 children with cancer aged 7-12 years, and 74 children with cancer aged 13-18 years, respectively. As a result of statistical analysis, the reliability and validity of the MSAS-J were demonstrated. Characteristics of distress in Japanese children with cancer, such as symptom frequency, and the differences between patient self-report and caregiver proxy-report were also elucidated.

Free Research Field

Patient Rported Outcome

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

今回開発したMSAS-Jは小児がん患者が経験する多数の症状を多面的に評価できる本邦で使用可能な唯一の尺度であり、小児がん治療研究におけるアウトカムの一つとしてのQOL評価や、小児がん臨床におけるより正確な症状評価および適切な緩和支持療法の提供へとつながる。また本研究で得られた小児がん患者の症状頻度やPatient Rported Outcomeの患者自己報告と保護者代理報告との間の差異についての知見は本邦における小児がんにおける緩和支持療法の標準化への一助となる。