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The EuroQol 5-dimension scale (EQ-5D) is one of the most frequently used preference-based quality of life (QOL) measures for health technology assessment. The 3-level version of the EQ-5D comprises a descriptive system (the EQ-5D-3L) and a visual analog scale (EQ-VAS). It remains unclear whether this five-item scale correlates with the QOL of patients with oral cancer during the perioperative period. We sought to clarify this point in the present study.Participants were 84 patients with oral malignancies who underwent radical treatment and completed the EQ-5D-3L and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Head and Neck (FACT-HN) at regular intervals over 3 months after treatment. We analyzed the correlations between the EQ-5D-3L, EQ-VAS, and FACT-HN, and conducted multiple regression analyses to examine how the FACT-HN subscales relate to the EQ-5D-3L and EQ-VAS. We also investigated whether the EQ-5D-3L shows ceiling effects.The EQ-5D-3L and EQ-VAS were strongly correlated with the FACT-HN (rOur results indicate that actual physical performance might be most important for cost-utility analysis, whereas the assessment of familial feelings or friendship seems less important. However, the EQ-5D-3L appears to generally correlate with the FACT-HN of patients with oral cancer during the perioperative period. Therefore, it is reasonable to assess the cost performance of oral cancer treatment using the EQ-5D-3L in Japan.

Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RQ-PCR) has been widely used for molecular monitoring for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Currently, RQ-PCR is not based on the concept of international scale (IS) in Japan; mainly because none of the domestic laboratories have obtained their own conversion factor (CF) which makes it possible to convert locally scaled BCR-ABL (BCR-ABL (L)) value to the IS (BCR-ABL (IS)). To join the global trend of molecular assessment of BCR-ABL in CML patients, we have tried to obtain a CF in Japan.Samples from 55 patients were exchanged between the Japanese laboratory and the reference laboratory in Adelaide, and BCR-ABL and internal control gene transcripts of the samples were measured using RQ-PCR. The patient bias conversion method was used to determine the CF for the IS using the Bland and Altman method.The local CF in the Japanese laboratory was determined to be 0.87. Based on this CF, 0.1% BCR-ABL (IS), defined as major molecular response, becomes equivalent to 731 copy/μg RNA BCR-ABL (L).This study is the first to introduce a laboratory-specific CF for harmonizing RQ-PCR methodology for detecting BCR-ABL transcripts to Japan, which may open new windows for molecular assessment of CML patients in Japan.