Quality of Life and Symptom Assessment in Radiation Oncology
After a diagnosis of cancer, most people experience not only symptoms associated with the diagnosis and treatment, but will describe the impact of the cancer on their lives ranging from minimal to devastating. Researchers and clinician have developed quality of life (QoL) and symptom questionnaire to measure the impact of the cancer and its treatment. The questionnaires will be answered on a touch screen computer by the patient. The purpose of this study is to describe the QoL and symptom status of UWMC cancer center outpatients as a group and provide background (historical control) data for the future projects and outcomes research that would aim to improve the efficacy of nursing care. During this study, I will be given the opportunity to meet with cancer patients and assist them with any questions about the equipment or the use of the computerized questionnaire.
