About our questionnaires

A questionnaire is an instrument designed to assess some of the different aspects that define the quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients or survivors.

The EORTC QLG Core Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) is a 30-item instrument designed to measure quality of life in all cancer patients.

In addition to the EORTC QLQ-C30, two core questionnaires derived from the EORTC QLQ-C30 are available:

  • the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL, a shortened version of the EORTC QLQ-C30 meant for palliative cancer care patients;
  • and the EORTC QLQ-F17, a shorter, 17-item version that includes only the functional scales and the Global Health Status / Quality of Life scale of the EORTC QLQ-C30.

The core questionnaires form the basis of the modular approach to QOL assessment adopted by the EORTC QLG and complemented by a range of available modules.

The overall aim of a module is to improve the sensitivity and specificity of assessments of QOL in specific groups of patients. This allows the patient’s experience to be assessed in a more precise way so that both differences between groups and changes over time can be captured.

Modules differ in their content. They may relate, for example, to QOL issues affecting particular tumour types (e.g. primary site, metastatic site), aspects of care (e.g. patient satisfaction) or patients’ psychological needs or experiences (e.g. information). Modules have been developed for defined patient groups (e.g. elderly), specific symptoms (e.g. fatigue, cachexia), treatment side-effects (e.g. radiation proctitis), or other areas of relevance and importance to specific groups (e.g. activities of daily living in people with brain tumours). In principle, most modules are developed to be used at diagnosis and then during treatment and follow-up. Modules are sometimes developed as ‘stand-alone questionnaires’ (for example, to assess patient satisfaction).

In cases where symptoms or issues (e.g., associated with novel treatments) are not covered by the core and module questionnaires, or when more flexibility is needed, customised item lists can be created using the EORTC QLG Item Library. This approach implemented by the EORTC QLG allows for ‘static + flexible’ PRO measurement in cancer patients.

More information on the EORTC Item Library available here.

How to obtain permission to use a module which is not yet fully validated?

As of “phase III completed” modules may be used in research and clinical trials under certain conditions which are detailed on the QLG website.

Although they have been carefully developed and tested for acceptability with patients, they have not undergone psychometric testing in a large international group of patients. Therefore, the suggested subscales for those modules are hypothetical and may change after psychometric analysis.

In principle, the module developers should have the right to publish their data first. Please see our Module Development Guidelines here for more details.

Terms and conditions of use modules under development can be found here.

List of questionnaires

Code Name
QLQ-C30 Quality of Life of Cancer Patients Core validated validated
QLQ-F17 QLQ-F17 Core validated
011/2022 Ovarian Cancer (updated of QLQ-OV28) Module I / II - in development
2135 Metastatic or locoregional recurrent anal cancer Module I / II - in development
PR-SURV19 Survivorship Module IV - in development
CR-SURV33 Survivorship Module IV - in development
BR-SURV40 Survivorship Module III - in development
2050 Update of the EORTC QLQ-PAN26 Module I / II - in development
WISP The WISP project Module III - in development
FinTox Financial Toxicity Module I / II - in development
ICI 2054 Immune Checkpoints Inhibitor Module I / II - in development
1749 Sarcoma Module I / II - in development
RCC Renal Cancer Module I / II - in development
1750 Multiple Myeloma (update of MY20) Module I / II - in development
M20MMM Metastatic malignant melanoma Module III - in development
1841 Male Breast Cancer Module I / II - in development
STO Gastric Cancer (update of QLQ-STO22) Module I / II - in development
CL Cutaneous T-cell and B-cell lymphomas Module I / II - in development
CHI Children 8-14 Module I / II - in development
Bladder 1942 Bladder cancer (merge of BLM30 and NMIBC24) Module I / II - in development
AYA Adolescents and Young Adults Core III b - in development In development
QLQ-ANL27 Anal Cancer Module validated
QLQ-BM22 Bone Metastases Module validated validated
QLQ-BN20 Brain Module validated validated
1751 BN20 update Module III - completed In development
QLQ-BR23 Breast Module validated validated
QLQ-BR45 Breast Cancer (update of QLQ-BR23) Module IV - completed In development
QLQ-BRECON23 Breast Reconstruction Module validated validated
QLQ-CAX24 Cancer Cachexia Module IV - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-FA12 Cancer related Fatigue Module validated validated
QLQ-CX24 Cervical Module validated validated
QLQ-CIPN20 Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-BIL21 Cholangiocarcinoma and Gallbladder Cancer Module validated validated
QLQ-CLL17 Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia Module validated Phase III completed
QLQ-CML24 Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia Module IV - in development Phase III completed
QLQ-CR29 Colorectal Module validated validated
QLQ-LMC21 Colorectal Liver Metastases Module validated validated
QLQ-COMU26 Communication Standalone validated
QLQ-ELD14 Elderly Cancer Patients Module validated validated
MBC Metastatic Breast Cancer Module I / II - in development In development
QLQ-EN24 Endometrial Module validated validated
FERT45 + FERT29 Fertility Module I / II - in development In development
QLQ-IN-PATSAT32 Satisfaction with In-Patient Cancer Care Standalone validated validated
QLQ-STO22 Gastric Module validated validated
QLQ-H&N35 Head & Neck Module validated validated
QLQ-H&N43 Head & Neck Cancer (update of QLQ-H&N35) Module validated validated
QLQ-HCC18 Hepatocellular Carcinoma Module validated validated
HCPS73 Hereditary Cancer Predisposition Syndrome Module III - in development In development
QLQ-HDC29 High-Dose Chemotherapy Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-NHL-HG29 High Grade Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Module validated Phase III completed
QLQ-HL27 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Module validated validated
IADL IADL in Brain Tumor Patients Module validated validated
QLQ-INFO25 Information Module validated validated
QLQ-NHL-LG20 Low Grade Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Module validated validated
QLQ-LC13 Lung Module validated validated
QLQ-LC29 Lung Cancer (update of QLQ-LC13) Module validated Phase III completed
QLQ-MEL38 Melanoma Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-MY20 Multiple Myeloma Module validated validated
QLQ-BLM30 Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-GINET21 Neuroendocrine Carcinoid Module validated validated
QLQ-NMIBC24 Non-Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-OES18 Oesophageal Module validated validated
QLQ-OG25 Oesophago-Gastric Module validated validated
QLQ-OPT30 Ophthalmic Cancer Module III - completed Phase III completed
QLQ-OH15 Oral Health Module validated validated
QLQ-OV28 Ovarian Module validated validated
QLQ-PAN26 Pancreatic Cancer Module III - completed Phase III completed
pNET Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumour Module III - completed In development
QLQ-PR25 Prostate Module validated validated
QLQ-C15-PAL Quality of Life in palliative cancer care patients Core validated validated
QLQ-PRT20 Radiation Proctitis Module validated validated
QLQ-PATSAT-C33 Satisfaction with Cancer Care – Core questionnaire Standalone IV - in development Phase III completed
QLQ-OUT-PATSAT7 Satisfaction with Out-Patient Cancer Care Standalone IV - in development Phase III completed
QLQ-SH22 Sexual Health Standalone validated validated
QLQ-SWB32 Spiritual Wellbeing Standalone validated validated
QLQ-SURV100 Survivorship Core IV - in development
SBQ Symptom-based questionnaire Standalone III - completed In development
QLQ-TC26 Testicular Cancer Module validated validated
QLQ-THY34 Thyroid Cancer Module validated Phase III completed
QLQ-VU34 Vulva Cancer Module IV - in development Phase III completed