Development and Validation of a Multidimensional Scale to Assess Cancer Health Education Outcomes in Patients

Background: Effective cancer health education enhances patients' understanding, emotional regulation, and treatment compliance. However, validated instruments specific to educational outcomes remain limited. These items reflect the proximal effects of education and are not meant to represent generic mental health states. Objective: To develop and validate a multidimensional scale to assess the effects of cancer health education, including a clear distinction of the outcomes as proximal educational results. Methods: Following ethical approval, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 236 adult cancer patients recruited at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China, from 06 January 2025 to 21 March 2025. Item generation was informed by the Health Belief Model, patient interviews, and expert review. The 13-item scale was administered via self-report questionnaire. Internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha, and construct validity was assessed through exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Results: EFA revealed a three-factor structure-Health Knowledge Comprehension, Emotional-Attitudinal Support, and Health Behavior Implementation-that explained 60.07% of the total variance. This suggests the multidimensional nature of cancer health education outcomes. The scale demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α =0.902), with all subscale alphas exceeding 0.80. Factor loadings ranged from 0.72 to 0.89, indicating strong item-factor relationships. Conclusion: The Cancer Health Education Scale is a multidimensional instrument with preliminary psychometric support for evaluating educational outcomes in cancer care. Further validation in diverse populations is required. The scale may provide a useful foundation for tailoring patient education programs and supporting future cross-cultural validation studies.