Below the Belt Award

Every year more than 16,000 Australian men are diagnosed with prostate cancer. Men diagnosed with localised prostate cancer (LPC) face a highly preference-sensitive choice between treatments with similar cure rates but different side effects. We recently found that men choosing between robotic prostatectomy and radiotherapy had varied information and decision-making preferences/needs. They often relied on information and recommendations from their clinicians, but such information was often imbalanced or incomplete. This study will develop and evaluate printed and online versions of a Question Prompt List (QPL) to help men get appropriate treatment information from their preferred source (i.e. treating clinicians) while accommodating diverse preferences regarding the type and amount of information desired. QPLs are a simple and inexpensive communication tool that have been shown to enhance patient participation in decision-making, improve information recall and reduce anxiety in other oncology settings. A multidisciplinary team including consumers, urologists, radiation oncologists, and psychology researchers will develop the QPL. It will be based on QPLs for other cancer groups, our previous research in this area and reviews of the scientific literature and existing resources for men with LPC. We will determine: 1) Preference for either the printed or online QPL; 2) Acceptability of the QPL to both patients and clinicians; 3) Feasibility of delivering the QPL early in the decision-making process. We expect that the QPL will be a feasible and acceptable tool for improving treatment decision making in men with LPC. The study will inform the best timing and method for delivering the QPL.