The Cachexia Assessment Scale: Development and Psychometric Properties

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To develop a tool to identify patients with cancer who suffer from cachexia throughout all stages of the disease. DESIGN Tool development study. SETTING Oncology day care, follow-up clinics, radiotherapy, and hospice home care. SAMPLE 90 patients with cancer (25 men and 65 women). METHODS The Cachexia Assessment Scale (CAS) was created based on a thorough review of the literature and was tested for its psychometric properties. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Presence of cachexia. FINDINGS Measures of reliability were determined by inter-rater, test-retest, and internal consistency reliability. Measures of validity were content validity, criterion validity, sensitivity, and specificity. CONCLUSIONS The CAS possesses adequate levels of reliability and validity and can be used to evaluate cachexia at all stages of cancer. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING The CAS can be used as an assessment tool for cachexia in various treatment settings.