We presented information from our last treatment adherence study in a poster at the 2014 American Society of Hematology meeting. The study compared patient and doctor/nurse perspectives on treatment adherence or continuation, including reasons that patients prematurely ended their treatment.
The health professionals in the study noted that the leading reason for discontinuation of disease modifying therapies was progression of the disease past the point of therapeutic benefit. The second leading cause for doctors to recommend treatment discontinuation was development of health conditions that prohibit further treatment. Closely related was the doctor’s perception of the patient’s inability to continue treatment due to side effects or a decline in quality of life related to treatment or fatigue. Approximately one third of the time, the discontinuation of treatment was linked to patient difficulties with daily logistics such as caregiving, transportation, or financial challenges. It’s clear from these findings that health care professionals treating MDS encourage treatment adherence or continuation when appropriate, while taking the whole patient into consideration when advising their patients on treatment options and outcomes.
AA&MDSIF encourages all patients to talk with their doctors if they have issues or concerns about the medications they are prescribed. There may be options available to manage many of the potential side effects. Potential remedies to the other logistical issues that might impact treatment continuation may be available as well. So be sure to bring up any issues you may have at future appointments with your healthcare team.