Breast Cancer Patients Stop Taking Drugs as Side Effects Take its Toll

| December 10, 2011

Breast Cancer Drugs

Breast Cancer Drugs

Breast cancer patients are abandoning their pill regimen at alarming rates, with an estimated one third ditching their prescriptions because of the intolerable side effect which included some combination of the following: weight gain, hot flashes, joint pain and more. Until recently, doctors were not aware that a large population of women have been abandoning their regimen, unable to cope with the side effects of taking their pills. Women who have undergone chemotherapy or radiation treatment appear to be less than accepting of the subsequent pill regimen, eschewing them because of the nasty side effects that make them feel worse than if they hadn’t been taking the pills in the first place. Unfortunately, those who abandon their regimen are at high risk of not eliminating the cancer in its totality. Naturally, this has doctors worried.

The problems, doctors observed is that patient-reported symptoms are few and far between, contributing to the perception that less than ten percent of patients are abandoning their treatment. Of course, the reality is that over one third are actually dismissing the treatment, and this is a big concern among healthcare providers. The chasm between patient-reported symptoms and provider-reported symptoms is not inconsequential; that is to say, there’s a significant difference as patients are aloof about reporting the side effects, let alone the fact that they are not taking the aromatase inhibitors that have been prescribed to them by their doctors. It appears that providers are going to have to find a way to better connect with patients to get a clear picture of the regimen abandon rate among their patients, and to work with them to find appropriate ways or even alternatives to ensure that patients follow the requisite five year regimen.

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