A modular questionnaire for the assessment of longterm quality of life in leukaemia patients: The MRC/EORTC QLQ-LEU

We describe the psychometric analysis of a supplementary quality of life measure (MRC/EORTC QLQ-LEU) for evaluating long term sequelae of leukaemia treatments. The questionnaire under development was administered to 388 patients entered into the EORTC-GIMEMA AML 8A and the MRC AML10 clinical trials who were in complete remission for at least one year after completion of treatment on these trials. Results indicated a measure which is useful in evaluating the long-term effects of treatment in relation to chronic graft-vs-host disease and infection susceptibility. The performance of this measure in terms of its sensitivity and specificity between treatment arms was established by comparisons between the three treatment modalities in the above-mentioned trials and is the subject of further investigation. The new Leukaemia Module can be recommended for use alongside generic QOL instruments as a measure of long-term quality of life in leukaemia trials.