Quality of Life in Patients Undergoing Embolization Using Yttrium Y 90 Glass Microspheres for Primary or Metastatic Liver Cancer

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

- Assess the quality of life (QOL) as defined by the presence or absence of physical,
social, emotional, and functional distress in patients with primary or metastatic liver
cancer undergoing treatment with radioembolization or transcatheter arterial
embolization.

- Compare the time course of QOL measures between treatment groups in patients treated
with these regimens.

- Compare the time course of QOL measures between patient subgroups defined by
pre-treatment quality of life or tumor burden.

OUTLINE: Patients complete FACT-Hep version 4 surveys on quality of life prior to initiation
of embolization, and at 2 weeks and 1 month after completion of embolization.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Diagnosis of primary hepatocellular cancer or metastatic liver cancer

- Planning radioembolization or transcatheter arterial embolization using yttrium Y 90
glass microspheres

- No encephalopathy

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- ECOG performance status 0-2

- Bilirubin ≤ 3 mg/dL

- Able to comply with study procedures

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

- No prior treatment with radioembolization or transcatheter arterial embolization