MISSING DATA IN QUALITY-OF-LIFE RESEARCH IN EASTERN-COOPERATIVE-ONCOLOGY-GROUP (ECOG) CLINICAL-TRIALS - PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

Incorporation of quality of life (QOL) investigation into Eastern Coop erative Oncology Group (ECOG) multi-centre clinical trials has led to innovative strategies for protocol design and high quality data collec tion. A scientific advisory committee reviews protocol design componen ts, measurement selection, timing of assessments and compliance issues . Extensive educational programmes provide information about the scien tific and clinical relevance of QOL protocols, as well as practical st rategies for data collection and management. Compliance with QOL data collection standards is prospectively monitored and evaluated. Prelimi nary results from eight ECOG-run protocols found overall compliance to be approximately 85 per cent (94 per cent at baseline and 73 per cent during treatment). Selected patient and institutional factors were ev aluated for their association with compliance. (C) 1998 John Wiley & S ons, Ltd.