Oral anticancer medications (OAMs) are a growing and important tool in the fight against cancer. More than 120 FDA-approved OAMs were used in clinical practice in 2022, and OAMs represent more than one-third of cancer medications in the development pipeline.
The quality of OAM use impacts clinical care, care coordination, patient safety and outcomes – including disparities in care, patient and caregiver experience, population health and prevention of cancer recurrence – and total health care costs.
You can read more about this work in our August 2023 report, Recommendations to Improve the Quality of Oral Anticancer Medications.
The uniqueness of OAMs and the complexity of their use present distinct challenges in measuring adherence or persistence to therapy in a standardized way.
Here are four key challenges to standardized measurement.
- Multiple types of OAMs are available, each with differing purposes in cancer treatment (e.g., neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy vs. adjuvant endocrine therapy for the prevention of recurrence).
- OAMs are often prescribed as part of complex cancer-specific treatment regimens with atypical dosing schedules, which can involve cycling or bursting of medication.
- Drug holidays, where the provider temporarily discontinues therapy, resulting in clinically appropriate periods of medication non-use, may appear as medication non-adherence.
- OAMs may be switched during therapy due to poor response, evidence of drug interactions, or intolerance of side effects.
Read more about these challenges and the next steps in PQA’s work to advance quality OAM use in PQA CEO Micah Cost’s recent article in Managed Healthcare Executive.