Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Comparison of two questionnaires to assess gastrointestinal toxicity in dogs and cats treated with chemotherapy*.
- Journal:
- Veterinary and comparative oncology
- Year:
- 2011
- Authors:
- Malone, E K et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Sciences · United States
Plain-English summary
This study looked at two different questionnaires that pet owners fill out to track gastrointestinal (GI) problems, like vomiting and loss of appetite, in dogs and cats receiving chemotherapy. The researchers wanted to see how well these questionnaires agreed with each other when assessing the severity of these issues. They found that while there was generally good agreement between the two methods, there were still some differences in how the symptoms were graded, particularly for loss of appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea. This suggests that using a standardized questionnaire could help improve the accuracy of monitoring these side effects in pets undergoing treatment. Overall, the study highlights the need for better tools to assess how chemotherapy affects pets' GI health.
Abstract
Questionnaires completed by pet owners are widely used instruments to monitor adverse gastrointestinal (GI) effects in the owners' animals undergoing chemotherapy and for reporting toxicoses in clinical trials; however, no questionnaires have been formally evaluated. This study compares two questionnaire-based evaluations of adverse GI events: a basic, open-ended questionnaire and a detailed questionnaire modelled after the grading in the Veterinary Co-operative Oncology Group-Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (VCOG-CTCAE). Owners completed both questionnaires after their dog or cat received moderately emetogenic chemotherapy. Results were used to derive toxicity grades for anorexia, vomiting and diarrhoea. We evaluated 123 pairs of questionnaires. Disagreement in grade of anorexia, vomiting and diarrhoea was found in 24, 7 and 13% of paired questionnaires, respectively (κ = 0.63, 0.83 and 0.71, respectively). Although 'good' to 'very good' agreement was found, the potential for only 'fair' agreement between questionnaire methods is of concern and suggests a need to adopt a standardized form.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21848625/