Cancer Survivor Valuations of Post-Diagnosis Life Years

The Quality-Adjusted Life Year (QALY) is widely used in health technology assessment to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of medical interventions. QALY calculations typically apply "utility weights" derived from general population surveys, in which healthy individuals imagine what it would be like to live with various health conditions. These weights assume that life with serious illness is worth less than life in full health. However, psychological research on phenomena such as the disability paradox, hedonic adaptation, and post-traumatic growth suggests that patients often value their health states more highly than population predictions suggest. This pilot study directly asked cancer survivors how they value their post-diagnosis life years.