Abstract 3219: Development of a quality-of-life assessment module in patients with radiation dermatitis

Introduction: Radiation dermatitis (RD) is one of the most common side effects of radiation therapy (RT), experienced by up to 95% of oncology patients. RD can be progressive, painful, and difficult to manage, thereby profoundly affecting patients’ quality of life (QOL). Current QOL assessments address dermatologic or oncologic concerns, with no existing tool integrating both areas to enable assessment of RD-specific QOL. Furthermore, RD grade does not consistently correlate with QOL scores in these assessments. The aims of this study are to identify unexplored QOL concerns in patients with RD and to create a new, RD-specific, validated assessment module to evaluate QOL in this patient population. Methods: We conducted open-ended interviews with 20 patients with breast cancer with current or former RD during a radiation oncology clinic visit to determine RD-specific QOL concerns. We analyzed the most high-yield concerns to determine areas that are not addressed by current QOL assessments. With a workgroup of radiation oncologists, dermatologists, a psycho-oncologist, and patients, we evaluated our findings and used common themes to generate a new QOL survey. Results: Among our patient cohort, 3 (15%) were undergoing current RT, 7 (35%) were at their first post-RT visit, 9 (45%) were at a follow-up visit within 12 months of completing RT, and 1 (5%) was at a follow-up visit over 12 months after completing RT. We uncovered four key areas affecting patients that are not incorporated into current QOL assessments: changes in clothing in 18 (90%) patients (e.g. wearing looser clothing, changing to a different bra, using a layer of bandages), changes in skin color in 17 (85%) patients (hyper- or hypopigmentation), changes in sleep due to skin changes in 13 (65%) patients (e.g. difficulty finding a comfortable position), and changes in ability to use the affected side in 9 (45%) patients (e.g. carrying items, avoiding contact with irritating material). We incorporated these four areas of concern into a six-question, RD-specific QOL assessment module to the Skindex-16, a validated and widely used QOL assessment in dermatology. Conclusions: This pilot study enabled us to discover previously unexplored QOL concerns in patients with RD that are not addressed in current dermatology and oncology focused assessments. Future work includes validation of this module in patients with acute RD with the goal of identifying opportunities to optimize treatment and enhance patient-centered care for this population. Citation Format: Olivia S. Allen, Alyson B. Moadel-Robblee, Jana Fox, Johnny Yap, Beth N. McLellan. Development of a quality-of-life assessment module in patients with radiation dermatitis [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 3219.