MDASI Heart Failure Module
The MD Anderson Symptom Inventory for heart failure (MDASI-HF) is a disease-specific MDASI module. Use the MDASI-HF to assess the severity of symptoms experienced by cancer patients with heart failure and the interference with daily living caused by these symptoms.
Along with the core MDASI’s 13 symptom items and 6 interference items, the MDASI-HF also assesses 8 symptoms specific to cancer patients with heart failure.
| Core MDASI Symptoms | Heart Failure Symptoms | MDASI Interference |
|---|---|---|
| Pain | Abdominal bloating | Relations with other people |
| Fatigue | Ankle swelling | Enjoyment of life |
| Nausea | Lack of energy | Mood |
| Disturbed sleep | Nighttime cough | Walking |
| Distress (feeling upset) | Sudden weight gain | Activity |
| Shortness of breath | Difficulty sleeping without added pillows under the head | Work (including housework) |
| Difficulty remembering | Waking up at night with difficulty breathing | |
| Lack of appetite | Racing heartbeat (palpitation) | |
| Drowsiness | ||
| Dry mouth | ||
| Sadness | ||
| Vomiting | ||
| Numbness/tingling |
Order the MDASI-HF
Use our convenient online form to order the MDASI-HF for use in your clinical research, clinical practice, funded and non-funded academic research, commercial research, or reproduction in educational materials or other publications.
MDASI-HF Features
- Purpose: To assess the severity of multiple symptoms related to cancer and concurrent heart failure and their treatment, and the impact of these symptoms on daily functioning
- Population: Patients with both cancer and heart failure
- Assessment areas: Severity of multiple symptoms and the impact of symptoms on daily functioning during the last 24 hours
- Method: Self-report or interview with research staff; paper-and-pencil or electronic data entry*
- Time required: Five minutes or less
- Scoring: Please see the MDASI User Guide
- Reliability: Cronbach alpha reliability ranges from 0.83 to 0.92
*Electronic data capture offers several benefits:
- Allows symptom monitoring when the patient is away from the hospital
- Is convenient for patients, who can choose web access, personalized patient portals, or smartphones to access questionnaires
- Minimizes missing data, especially in longitudinal studies
- Provides accurate, real-time symptom data at expected time points
- Generates immediate feedback, potentially allowing caregivers to address severe symptoms more effectively
MDASI-HF Language Versions
Click on a linked language to view a sample in PDF format.
Don't see a language you need? Contact us at symptomresearch@mdanderson.org.
| Psychometrically and Linguistically Validated | Linguistically Validated |
|---|---|
| English | Chinese (in process) |
MDASI User Guide
In response to the US Food and Drug Administration's 2009 guidance for the pharmaceutical industry on the use of patient-reported outcomes measures in medical product development to support labeling claims, we have prepared a MDASI User Guide to document the development and psychometric properties of the MDASI and its modules, including the MDASI-HF. The User Guide addresses the recommendations in the FDA guidance and establishes the MDASI's adequacy as a measure to support medical product claims.
Selected MDASI-HF References
Validation
Fadol A, Mendoza T, Gning I, et al. Psychometric testing of the MDASI-HF: a symptom assessment instrument for patients with cancer and concurrent heart failure. J Card Fail 14(6): 497-507, 2008.
Cleeland CS, Mendoza TR, Wang XS, et al. Assessing symptom distress in cancer: The M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory. Cancer 2000; 89:1634-1646.
Fadol A, Buitrago J, Diaz MC, et al. Validation of the Spanish version of the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory - Heart Failure (MDASI-HF-Spanish) module. Cardiooncology 4;5:19, 2019.
Chair SY, Wang Q, Yu M, et al. A psychometric evaluation of the Chinese version of the M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory-Heart Failure in Chinese cancer patients with concurrent heart failure. Rehabil Nurs 42(6):354-361, 2017.
Clinical Application
Schäfer-Keller P, Santos GC, Denhaerynck K, et al. Self-care, symptom experience, needs, and past health-care utilization in individuals with heart failure: results of a cross-sectional study. Eur J Cardiovasc Nurs 20(5):464-474, 2021.
Fadol AP, Mendoza TR, Lenihan DJ, Berry DL Addressing the symptom management gap in patients with cancer and heart failure using the interactive voice response system: a pilot study. J Adv Pract Oncol 9(2):201-214, 2018.
Every MDASI module contains:
all 13 core MDASI symptoms...
pain, fatigue, nausea, disturbed sleep, distress, shortness of breath, difficulty remembering, lack of appetite, drowsiness, dry mouth, sadness, vomiting, numbness/tingling
...and all 6 MDASI interference items
general activity, mood, work, relations with others, walking, enjoyment of life
The debilitating symptoms of cancer combined with heart failure adversely affect patients' quality of life. By defining symptom severity and prevalence from the patient's perspective, the MDASI-HF is an invaluable and informative tool for providers.
Anecita Fadol, Ph.D., APRN
Associate Professor, Nursing & Cardiolgy