Italian version of the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory-Head and Neck Module: linguistic validation

Background: Head and neck cancer (HNC) patients can experience symptoms due to the tumor itself or to the treatment, with an impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures pertaining to HRQoL are used in medical research and to support clinical decisions. PRO instrument applicability and cultural adaptation must be tested for each population. The aim of this study is to linguistically validate the Italian translation of the M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory—Head and Neck Module (MDASI-HN). Methods: Following forward and backward translation of the items of the English MDASI-HN into Italian, it was administered along with a cognitive debriefing to HNC…