Abstract

Objective: Describe the quality of life of patients cured of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated at the Oncology Unit at Roberto del Rio Children's Hospital. Method: With a transversal design, the Kidscreen-27 questionnaire was applied to a selected sample of 41 patients. Results were compared with a random sample of school children paired for age and sex. Results: Children cured from ALL had lower scores than the control group, although ANOVA showed differences were not significant. ALL children tended to self report as ill, significantly lower in physical well-being. Average followup time was 8 years. Conclusions: Quality of life of chilean children cured from ALL is similar to school children of similar age and gender. To preserve the quality of life, it is suggested that the following measures be taken: prevention of sequelae, detection and treatment of emotional disorders, and discharge at a reasonable time.