Assessing the Validity and Acceptability of an Adult Quality of Life Questionnaire, the EORTC QLQ-C30, for Adolescents With Cancer

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QLQ-C30 was acceptable and easy for adolescents, requiring a mean 12 minutes to complete.
Psychometric testing confirmed subscale structure; internal consistency Cronbach's alpha 0.70 to 0.84, with good convergent and discriminant validity.
Over half preferred paper administration; QLQ-C30 is valid for adolescents and suitable for clinical trials and life course outcome assessment.

Cancer Med. 2026 May;15(5):e71952. doi: 10.1002/cam4.71952.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The EORTC QLQ-C30 (QLQ-C30) is the most widely used cancer-specific patient-reported outcome questionnaire in adult clinical trials, but its suitability for adolescents who have distinct developmental needs is unclear. Adolescents with cancer are often underrepresented in clinical trials, and efforts are underway to improve their participation by lowering the age of entry. This study evaluated the QLQ-C30’s acceptability, reliability, validity and delivery preferences in adolescents with cancer across different languages and cultural backgrounds.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Adolescents aged 12-17 years, undergoing or having completed cancer treatment for curative or palliative intent, completed the QLQ-C30 alongside the PedsQL Cancer Teen questionnaire and shared their feedback on relevance, ease of completion and preferred mode of administration (paper or electronic). Socio-demographic and clinical data were recorded.

RESULTS: Two hundred adolescents (mean age 14.5 years, standard deviation (SD) 1.6 years; 51.5% male) representing different cultures participated. The QLQ-C30 required a mean 12 min to complete and was described as acceptable and easy to complete. Psychometric testing confirmed the QLQ-C30 subscale structure with acceptable-to-good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α 0.70-0.84), as well as good convergent and discriminant validity with PedsQL subscales. Comparisons of scores according to treatment intent and performance status demonstrated some support for known-group validity. Over half (57%) adolescents preferred paper completion of questionnaires.

CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to systematically evaluate the QLQ-C30 in adolescents and establishes its acceptability and validity in this population, confirming it as a measure of choice for clinical trials involving adolescents and enabling robust life course-based outcome assessment.

PMID:42168789 | DOI:10.1002/cam4.71952

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