Further development of a quality of life measure for cancer patients: The rotterdam symptom checklist (revised)

Further development of existing measures of health‐related quality of life (QL) is indicated. The present study examined the factor structure of the Rotterdam symptom checklist (RSCL), a self‐rating scale developed for determination of QL among cancer patients which was recently recommended by the UK Medical Research Council Cancer Therapy Committee Working Party on Quality of Life. A comparison is also reported of the RSCL with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale (PAIS) in a separate sample of patients, selected because they showed evidence of psychopathology. The data indicate that the RSCL can be used as a two‐factor measure for assessing psychological and physical morbidity. Scores for both sub‐scales were found to be higher for female patients. An observed positive association between HADS depression scores and the physical symptoms sub‐scale of the RSCL, in our selected sample, suggests some caution is needed when interpreting levels of physical morbidity and depression among cancer patients, as physical symptom scores may be associated with depression‐related somatic symptoms. Although the RSCL does not measure all dimensions of psychosocial functioning, it is a useful and brief method of assessing physical and psychological morbidity in cancer patients.