Pulmonary symptoms measured by the national institutes of health lung score predict overall survival, nonrelapse mortality, and patient-reported outcomes in chronic graft-versus-host disease

The 2005 National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Conference recommended assessment of lung function in patients with chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) by both pulmonary function tests (PFTs) and assessment of pulmonary symptoms. We tested whether pulmonary measures were associated with nonrelapse mortality (NRM), overall survival (OS), and patient-reported outcomes (PRO). Clinician and patient-reported data were collected serially in a prospective, multicenter, observational study. Available PFT data were abstracted. Cox regression models were fit for outcomes using a time-varying covariate model for lung function measures and adjusting for patient and transplantation characteristics and nonlung chronic GVHD severity. A total of 1591 visits (496 patients) were used in this analysis. The NIH symptom-based lung score was associated with NRM (P= .02), OS (P= .02), patient-reported symptoms (P < .001) and functional status (P < .001). Worsening of NIH symptom-based lung score over time was associated with higher NRM and lower survival. All other measures were not associated with OS or NRM; although, some were associated with patient-reported lung symptoms. In conclusion, the NIH symptom-based lung symptom score of 0 to 3 is associated with NRM, OS, and PRO measures in patients with chronic GVHD. Worsening of the NIH symptom-based lung score was associated with increased mortality.