ERUS 2018: Outcomes: Patient Reported Outcomes: PROMS and PREMS in Robotic Radical Prostatectomy

Marseille, France (UroToday.com) An overview of patient-reported outcomes (PROMS) and patient-reported experiences (PREMS) was given by Dr. Wallerstedt.
 As widely reported, the prevalence of prostate cancer is on the rise. Fortunately, cancer control is improving as well, and the number of survivors is also increasing. Consequently, our attention to the quality of survivorship should be more focused now.

There is always a balance between the final functional status of the patient and the radicality of the surgery he undergoes. Unfortunately, physicians tend to overestimate the functional recovery of their patients, as shown in figure 1.

Figure 1
Figure 1 – Doctors underestimate the functional recovery of their patients:

Due to this underestimation by physicians, PROMs and PREMs were created. PROM is a measure of how patients themselves experience their illness and health after treatment. It assesses their symptoms, functional ability, and health-related quality of life. PREM, on the other hand, is a measure of the patient’s experience and satisfaction with the care.

Implementation of PROS has a positive effect on physician-patient communication and facilitates individual patient decision making. It enables the physician’s feedback on patients’ status and performance over time and can be used for research.

The implementation of PROMS and PREMS requires rigorous planning and involves logistical preparation, validated questionnaires (paper, web-based, telephone, interview), and acquiring baseline data and repeated measures. The currently recommend questionnaires to be used by EAU include the FACT-G, FACT-P, EORTC QLQ-C30, EORTC QLQ-PR 25, EPIC, EPIC 25, UCLA PCI, and PCQoL.

Dr. Wallerstedt summarized her talk by stating that PROs are critical to accurately and objectively track patient health-related quality of life over time. It is also beneficial for patient counseling, can help us improve the surgical technique, and enables us to scientifically and meticulously compare data. It is a vital tool to improve patient outcomes and experience and is needed to objectively acquire health-related quality of life data for non-biased research.

Presented by: Anna Wallerstedt, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden

Written by: Hanan Goldberg, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow (SUO), University of Toronto, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Twitter:@GoldbergHanan at the EAU Robotic Urology Section (ERUS) Meeting - September 5 - 7, 2018 - Marseille, France