Validity of HINT-8 in evaluating health-related quality of life among cervical cancer patients.

Aim: Cervical cancer, caused primarily by human papillomavirus infection, affects patients' health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Despite research on quality of life in cancer patients, studies using the HINT-8 instrument, especially for cervical cancer, are scarce. This study evaluates the validity of HINT-8 in measuring HRQoL among Korean cervical cancer patients by comparing it with EQ-5D-5L. Materials & methods: Demographic and clinical characteristics were analyzed. Mean, median and standard deviations for each domain of both instruments were calculated. Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients assessed relationships between HINT-8 and EQ-5D-5L indices and domains.

Results

Increased problem intensity in HINT-8 domains (e.g., stair climbing, pain and vitality) was correlated with decreased EQ-5D-5L index, indicating a higher response level in HINT-8 aligns with lower EQ-5D-5L scores. Significant variables were consistent across tools, showing no substantial functional difference. A strong correlation between HINT-8 and EQ-5D-5L indices (r = 0.771, p < 0.01) supports HINT-8's effectiveness in evaluating HRQoL for cervical cancer patients.

Conclusion

The HINT-8 demonstrated a strong correlation with the EQ-5D-5L index and a substantially lower ceiling effect, suggesting that it can capture subtle differences in HRQoL among cervical cancer patients. Furthermore, the HINT-8 may provide complementary information beyond the EQ-5D-5L by capturing distinct dimensions such as memory, sleep and happiness, which are not explicitly represented in the EQ-5D-5L descriptive system. These findings support the validity of the HINT-8 as a complementary instrument for assessing HRQoL in Korean cervical cancer patients.