Financial well‐being as a mediator of the relationship between multimorbidity and health‐related quality of life in people with cancer

Background It is unknown whether financial well‐being mediates the impact of multimorbidity on the health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) of cancer patients. Methods Participants were recruited from three outpatient oncology clinics of Hong Kong public hospitals. Multimorbidity was assessed using the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Financial well‐being, the mediator of the association between multimorbidity and HRQoL outcomes, was assessed using the Comprehensive Score for Financial Toxicity Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy. The HRQoL outcomes were assessed using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy – General (FACT‐G) and its four sub‐dimensions. Mediation analyses were conducted using SPSS PROCESS v4.1. Results Six‐hundred and forty cancer patients participated in the study. Multimorbidity had a direct effect on FACT‐G scores independent of financial well‐being (β for path c’ = −0.752, p