The Importance of Disease-Free Survival as a Clinical Trial Endpoint: A Qualitative Study Among Canadian Survivors of Lung Cancer

Andrea Bever, Jackie Manthorne, Tissa Rahim, Layla Moumin and Shelagh M. Szabo ()
Additional contact information
Andrea Bever: Broadstreet HEOR
Jackie Manthorne: Canadian Cancer Survivor Network
Tissa Rahim: Broadstreet HEOR
Layla Moumin: Canadian Cancer Survivor Network
Shelagh M. Szabo: Broadstreet HEOR

The Patient: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research, 2022, vol. 15, issue 3, No 3, 307-316

Abstract: Abstract Background In lung cancer trials, overall survival is a well-validated and widely used endpoint; yet, in the context of adjuvant or curative intent treatments, disease-free survival (DFS) may be a better indicator of transformative patient outcomes. Although use of DFS is growing, patient perceptions of its relevance have not been established. Objective We aimed to understand the importance of DFS as a trial endpoint, from the perspective of survivors of lung cancer. Methods Web-based qualitative interviews were conducted with Canadian survivors of stage Ib–IIIa lung cancer. Participants described their experiences of cancer diagnosis and treatment, including their treatment goals and priorities. Participants then provided their perspectives on DFS and overall survival, and how well each aligned with their treatment priorities. Thematic analysis was used to explore patterns in responses. Results Among the 18 participants (mean age, 64 years), 83% were female, most (89%) had received surgery, and 56% received chemotherapy. Most participants viewed DFS as an intrinsically meaningful treatment outcome, for reasons such as alignment with treatment goals, and the perception that DFS would help maintain a high quality of life. One individual was interested in DFS only as a potential surrogate for overall survival. Participants desired access to new treatments that improve DFS and emphasized this within the context of promoting patient agency in treatment decision making. Conclusions These findings suggest DFS is a meaningful endpoint from the perspective of survivors of lung cancer; and may help inform decisions regarding regulatory approval and reimbursement of new treatments based on DFS data.

Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40271-021-00552-w Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:patien:v:15:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s40271-021-00552-w

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/economics/journal/40271

DOI: 10.1007/s40271-021-00552-w

Access Statistics for this article

The Patient: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research is currently edited by Christopher I. Carswell

More articles in The Patient: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research from Springer, International Academy of Health Preference Research
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().