A routine threat to palliative care research is participants not completing studies. The purpose of this analysis was to quantify attrition rates mid-way through a palliative care study on Dignity Therapy and describe the reasons cited for attrition. Enrolled in the study were a total of 365 outpatients with cancer who were receiving outpatient specialty palliative care (mean age 66.7 ± 7.3 years, 56% female, 72% White, 22% Black, 6% other race/ethnicity). These participants completed an initial screening for cognitive status, performance status, physical distress, and spiritual distress. There were 76 eligible participants who did not complete the study (58% female, mean age 67.9 ± 7.3 years, 76% White, 17% Black, and 7% other race). Of those not completing the study, the average scores were 74.5 ± 11.7 on the Palliative Performance Scale and 28.3 ± 1.5 on the Mini-Mental Status Examination, whereas 22% had high spiritual distress scores and 45% had high physical distress scores. The most common reason for attrition was death/decline of health (47%), followed by patient withdrawal from the study (21%), and patient lost to follow-up (21%). The overall attrition rate was 24% and within the a priori projected attrition rate of 20%-30%. Considering the current historical context, this interim analysis is important because it will serve as baseline data on attrition prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research will compare these results with attrition throughout the rest of the study, allowing analysis of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the study attrition.
Keywords: attrition; cancer; dignity therapy; palliative care; spirituality.