Quality of life linked to lung cancer survival

Mayo Clinic researchers found that newly-diagnosed lung cancer patients who rated their quality of life higher lived longer. These patients survived nearly six years as opposed to less than two years among patients who had reported a low quality of life. Quality of life involves the person’s feelings of his physical, mental and emotional well-being. The study stems from the idea that two patients can be similar in health and age, yet fare differently with the disease. 2,442 patients who were treated for lung cancer at Mayo over 11 years rated their quality of life on a scale of zero to 100. The researchers found that the 21 percent who rated their life at 50 or lower survived an average of 1.6 years. Those who rated the quality of their lives higher lived an average of 5.6 years. The death rate during the study period was 55 percent higher among patients who gave low ratings.