Constructing Health State Descriptions for Low-Risk Thyroid Cancer: Stakeholder Engagement and Formative Qualitative...

Area of Science:

• Health economics
• Qualitative research
• Patient-centered outcomes

Background:

• Assessing the value of health states in low-risk thyroid cancer requires appropriate tools.
• Health state descriptions (HSDs) are essential for stated-preference research and value assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To involve stakeholders in creating novel HSDs for low-risk thyroid cancer.
• To ensure HSDs are comprehensible, comparable, and appropriate for research.

Main Methods:

• Formative, descriptive qualitative methods were employed.
• Data collection included interviews and focus groups with patients, providers, and the general public (N=31).
• Iterative refinement of HSDs occurred over a year with community advisory board input.

Main Results:

• Thyroid cancer survivors provided feedback on emotional well-being and relevance.
• Providers emphasized clinical accuracy and inclusion of complications.
• Non-patient participants highlighted the need for simplified language and readability.

Conclusions:

• Continuous stakeholder engagement was vital for refining HSDs.
• The developed HSDs are suitable for stated-preference research.
• Stakeholders expressed interest in using HSDs as decision aids for newly diagnosed patients.