Instruments for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) generally do not consider
the subjective importance of the dimensions they comprise. The aims of this study were to analyze the
subjectively perceived importance of the dimension of HRQoL and to investigate their relationship to
the satisfaction ratings with these dimensions. A total of 1108 participants enrolled in a cancer rehabilitation
program were surveyed. Patients rated eight dimensions of HRQoL (physical functioning,
autonomy, emotional stability, cognitive functioning, social relationships, vitality, absence of pain,
and sleep quality), as well as global health in terms of how important those dimensions are to them,
and how satisfied they are with them. The dimensions with the highest importance ratings were
autonomy and social relationships. There were only small sex differences in the importance ratings,
but younger patients rated health as being more important than older patients did. The correlations
between the importance ratings and the satisfaction ratings of the specific HRQoL dimensions ranged
from 0.06 to 0.40, and the correlation between importance and satisfaction for global health was
0.01. Importance ratings provide relevant information for health care professionals in addition to the
HRQoL assessments in the context of cancer rehabilitation
