open access: Perspectives of health care professionals on cancer cachexia: results from three global surveys

open access

Conclusions These surveys underscore the need for increased awareness among HCPs of CC and its management.

introduction

Cachexia is a debilitating condition with high occurrence in cancer patients, particularly in those with advanced disease [1, 2]; up to 20% of patients die as a result of cancer cachexia (CC) [3]. CC has been defined as a multifactorial syndrome characterized by muscle depletion, with or without loss of adipose tissue, which cannot be completely reversed by available treatments, leading to progressive functional derangements [4]. The pathophysiology of CC is characterized by reduced food intake and abnormal metabolism, which lead to a negative protein and energy balance [4]. The agreed-on diagnostic criteria for CC are a weight loss >5%, or a weight loss >2% in patients already showing depletion according to body mass index (BMI <20 kg/m²) or skeletal muscle mass [4].

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surveys design and inclusion criteria

Three surveys were conducted among HCPs by Synovate Healthcare (now Ipsos Healthcare; Surveys 1 and 3) and Adelphi (Survey 2), between 2011 and 2012. The design of each study was developed according to the best market research practice. All questions were tested for understandability through an internal process among experts of the companies involved in the surveys' development. Since this was the first initiative in the field, the questions chosen for these surveys were not externally validated. Partial completion was not allowed or used for final analysis. Questions asked or discussed in the surveys and reported herein are described in supplementary Table S1, available at Annals of Oncology online.