Prostate Cancer Practice Patterns and Quality of Life: the Prostate Cancer Outcomes Study

Abstract

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed (non-skin) cancer among men in the United States, with 179 000 new cases and 37 000 deaths expected in 1999 ( 1 ). Although $5 billion is spent annually for the care of those diagnosed with prostate cancer ( 2 ), a systematic evaluation of practice patterns and the impact of treatments on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) on a national scale has yet to be conducted. In 1994, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) initiated the Prostate Cancer Outcomes Study (PCOS) to investigate variations in the initial treatment of prostate cancer and to describe HRQOL outcomes in a large, heterogeneous cohort of newly diagnosed prostate cancer patients treated in community medical practices. The study is the most comprehensive population-based outcomes study focusing on prostate cancer ever conducted and complements the national prostate cancer research agenda.