Cross-cultural and Moroccan Validation of the University of Washington Quality of Life Questionnaire for Patients With Head and Neck Cancer

Objectives: To translate the original English version of the University of Washington Quality of Life (UW-QOL) questionnaire into Moroccan Arabic version and investigate its psychometric validity and reliability for Moroccan-speaking patients with head and neck cancer. Methods: The UW-QOL was conducted in 104 patients treated for head and neck cancer in the department of head and neck surgery, Ibn Rochd university hospital, Casablanca. A control group of 57 healthy volunteers was also evaluated. The questionnaire was translated into Moroccan language. Results: Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.829, suggesting good internal consistency, and test-retest reliability was excellent (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] = 0.987). A good correlation was observed between UW-QOL composite scores and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) global health status/QOL scores (P < .001). There was also low concordance between the UW-QOL scores and the Physical Component Summary and Mental Component Summary scores of the 36-Item Short-Form questionnaire (SF-36) (P = .017 and P = .014, respectively). Conclusions: The Moroccan UW-QOL questionnaire appears to be culturally appropriate and psychometrically valid.