David Cella

Research summary

Patient-reported-outcome (PRO) measurement instruments and oncology clinical trials organise this corpus. The 1993 Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) general-scale paper describes a five-phase development of a 33-item general cancer quality-of-life measure, starting from a 370-item open-ended-interview pool with 854 patients and 15 oncology specialists, reduced first to a 38-item general version and validated by factor and scaling analyses on 545 patients [1]. The 2007 Medical Care paper presents the PROMIS network organisation and scientific activity through its first two years: six primary research sites, a statistical coordinating centre, and NIH research scientists, with functional subcommittees and a steering committee, designed to develop and standardise item banks for patient-reported outcomes across common medical conditions [2]. The 2011 Assessment paper reports development and IRT-based calibration of item banks for depression, anxiety, and anger from an initial pool of 1,404 items in 305 instruments, reduced through qualitative analysis (focus groups and cognitive interviewing) to 168 items (56 per construct) calibrated in a sample of nearly 15,000 respondents; the final banks contain 28, 29, and 29 items for depression, anxiety, and anger respectively [5]. The 2009 Quality of Life Research paper derives PROMIS Global Health Physical and Mental summary scores from 10 self-reported global health items obtained in an internet survey and examines associations with EQ-5D index and PROMIS physical-function, pain, fatigue, emotional-distress, and social-health domain scores via exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis [6]. Two oncology RCTs ground the PRO instruments in trial endpoints: the 2007 NEJM paclitaxel + bevacizumab vs paclitaxel-alone trial in 722 metastatic breast cancer patients tested progression-free survival as primary and overall survival as secondary endpoints with paclitaxel 90 mg/m² on days 1, 8, 15 every 4 weeks ± bevacizumab 10 mg/kg on days 1, 15 [3]; the 2003 JAMA IDEAL gefitinib trial compared 250 mg vs 500 mg daily doses in symptomatic NSCLC patients, assessing differences in symptomatic and radiographic response between dose levels in patients who had progressed after chemotherapy [4]. The six works span the construction of cancer-specific [1] and condition-general PRO infrastructure [2,5,6] alongside the oncology trial endpoints that PROs are designed to support [3,4].

Recent publications

1. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy scale: development and validation of the general measure.1993 · Journal of Clinical Oncology · 5989 citationsDOI
2. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) developed and tested its first wave of adult self-reported health outcome item banks: 2005–20082010 · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · 5027 citationsDOI
3. Interpreting the Clinical Importance of Treatment Outcomes in Chronic Pain Clinical Trials: IMMPACT Recommendations2007 · Journal of Pain · 3340 citationsDOI
4. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)2007 · Medical Care · 3109 citationsDOI
5. Paclitaxel plus Bevacizumab versus Paclitaxel Alone for Metastatic Breast Cancer2007 · New England Journal of Medicine · 3046 citationsDOI
6. Efficacy of Gefitinib, an Inhibitor of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Tyrosine Kinase, in Symptomatic Patients With Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer2003 · JAMA · 2535 citationsDOI
7. Recommended methods for determining responsiveness and minimally important differences for patient-reported outcomes2007 · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · 2348 citationsDOI
8. Item Banks for Measuring Emotional Distress From the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®): Depression, Anxiety, and Anger2011 · Assessment · 2116 citationsDOI
9. Development of physical and mental health summary scores from the patient-reported outcomes measurement information system (PROMIS) global items2009 · Quality of Life Research · 1962 citationsDOI
10. Measuring fatigue and other anemia-related symptoms with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) measurement system1997 · Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · 1948 citationsDOI

The lab page does not clearly state student acceptance status. Email the professor directly to confirm.

How to apply

Email David Cella 6-12 months before your application deadline. Read several recent papers and reference specific work in your message. Use our how to email a Japanese professor guide for the proven email structure.

For applications via MEXT scholarship: see our MEXT 2027 complete guide and university-specific University Recommendation track.

External profiles

• ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9881-4541
• OpenAlex: openalex.org

Profile compiled from public sources (Researchmap, OpenAlex, University of Tsukuba faculty directory). Last refreshed 2026-05. Report incorrect information.