Treatment-Induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale
The Treatment-Induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale (TNAS) is a valid, reliable and brief patient-reported outcome measure of peripheral neuropathy, a common complication of cancer treatment. Measuring peripheral neuropathy in research and practice is necessary for effective management and prevention of this debilitating condition.
| TNAS Symptom Items | TNAS Interference Items |
|---|---|
| Numbness in arms, legs, hands, or feet |
Difficulty using hands or fingers |
| Tingling in arms, legs, hands, or feet | Trouble walking |
| Pain in arms, legs, hands, or feet | Trouble with balance or falling |
| Hot or burning sensations in arms, legs, hands, or feet | Disturbed sleep due to neuropathy |
| Feelings of coldness in hands, fingers, feet, or toes |
Order the TNAS
Use our convenient online form to order the TNAS for use in your clinical research, clinical practice, funded and non-funded academic research, commercial research, or reproduction in educational materials or other publications.
TNAS Features
- Purpose: To assess the severity of peripheral neuropathy and its impact on daily functioning
- Population: Patients with peripheral neuropathy caused by cancer and cancer treatment
- Assessment Areas: Severity of neuropathy-related symptoms and the impact of these symptoms on daily functioning in the past 24 hours
- Method: Self-report or interview with research staff; paper-and-pencil or electronic data entry*
- Time required: Five minutes
- Scoring: A global symptom severity score can be obtained by averaging all 5 symptom items
- Reliability: Cronbach alpha reliability ranges from 0.80 to 0.87
*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
TNAS 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 (Simplified) |
| Hebrew |
Selected TNAS References
Validation
Mendoza TR, Williams LA, Shi Q, et al. The Treatment-induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale (TNAS): a psychometric update following qualitative enrichment. J Patient Rep Outcomes 4(1): 15, 2020.
Williams LA, Garcia-Gonzalez A, Mendoza TR, et al. Concept domain validation and item generation for the Treatment-Induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale (TNAS). Support Care Cancer 27(3): 1021-1028, 2019.
Mendoza TR, Wang XS, Williams LA, et al. Measuring therapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: preliminary development and validation of the Treatment-induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale (TNAS). J Pain 16(10): 1032-1043, 2015.
Mendoza TR, Williams LA, Shi Q, et al. Measuring treatment-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients with cancer [abstract]. American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 52nd Annual Meeting, Chicago IL, Jun 3-7, 2016. J Clin Oncol 34(Suppl), 5/2016; Abstract #e21674.
Williams L, Mendoza TR, Shi Q, et al. Measuring treatment-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients with cancer: the Treatment-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy Scale (TNAS) [abstract]. Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer/International Society of Oral Oncology (MASCC/ISOO) 2016 Annual Meeting, Adelaide, Australia, Jun 23-25, 2016. Support Care Cancer 24(Suppl 1): S133, 6/2016; Abstract #eP152.
Neuropathy-related sensory and motor deficits are often more bothersome to patients than pain. The TNAS allows us to capture and measure the most important effects of treatment-induced peripheral neuropathy.
Tito R. Mendoza, Ph.D.
Professor, Symptom Research