Patient reported endpoints for measuring clinical benefit in (high grade glioma) primary brain tumor patients

Symptom occurrence impacts primary brain tumor patients from the time of diagnosis and often heralds recurrence. In addition, the therapy can also result in symptoms that may compound tumor-associated symptoms, further impacting the patient's function and overall quality of life. There is increasing recognition that clinical studies evaluating tumor response using only measures of tumor size on imaging or survival are inadequate in brain tumor patients. Many symptoms can only be assessed from the patient, and patient reported outcome measures have been developed and have adequate reliability and validity. These measures are beginning to be incorporated into clinical trials. Guidelines on their use and meaning are needed to standardize assessment across trials and facilitate measurement of clinical benefit.