Aims: As the world population ages and cancer mortality decreases, more people are living with and beyond cancer and experiencing the long-term consequences of cancer and its treatment. The Macmillan HORIZONS Programme is a prospective, longitudinal cohort study exploring clinical and psychosocial outcomes in three cohorts of cancer patients. The aim of this poster is to describe the baseline characteristics, by cancer type, of the HORIZONS participants.
Methods: The HORIZONS cohorts consist of patients with breast cancer (diagnosed <50 years), non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL), or a gynaecological cancer (cervical, endometrial, ovarian, vulval). The aim was to invite all newly diagnosed patients due to have curative intent treatment to participate. The target sample size was 3,000. Sample size calculations were based on the primary outcome measure (Quality of Life in Adult Cancer Survivors). Participants were recruited from 110 hospitals across the UK between September 2016 and March 2019. Participants consented to completing self-report questionnaires and for recruiting hospitals to gather clinical information from participants’ medical records. Aggregate data on patients who declined participation were also collected.
Results: Over 9,000 patients were screened; 3,385 participants were eligible at baseline and recruited with full consent, 42% breast cancer, 37% gynaecological cancer and 21% NHL. Return rates at baseline for the participants’ self-reported questionnaires and hospitals’ clinical details were 82.9% and 99.8%, respectively. This poster will summarise recruitment into the study for each cohort. HORIZONS cohort profile reporting will follow the STROBE guidance and demographic and clinical characteristics will be presented.
Conclusions: Results from the Macmillan HORIZONS Programme will contribute to knowledge of cancer survivors’ characteristics, outcomes and experiences, including those with less common cancers. HORIZONS has the potential to transform care for people living with and beyond cancer.