ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: This study aims to investigate the impact of medication reconciliation (MR) conducted by pharmacists before patient enrollment and the initiation of investigational treatments. By implementing MR, the primary objective is to evaluate the extent to which the inclusion of patients with prohibited or not recommended concomitant medications in clinical trials can be significantly reduced. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included all patients who participated in clinical trials and underwent MR between September 1, 2015, and September 1, 2020. To identify prohibited or monitored drugs, protocols and investigator's brochures provided by the sponsor were meticulously reviewed and taken into consideration. RESULTS: MR was performed for 501 patients, uncovering 35% of the medications they were currently taking. Through the pharmaceutical analysis, a total of 346 drug-drug interactions (DDIs) were identified, of which 188 required monitoring and 158 were strictly prohibited. More than half of the prohibited medications were herbal drugs. A significant portion of these prohibited drugs were discontinued, with only 6% being replaced by suitable alternatives. The implementation of MR played a crucial role in the identification of 51% of the prohibited or monitored drugs that were initially overlooked by oncologists. CONCLUSION: MR is a highly effective measure aimed at reducing the risk of DDIs with investigational drugs, thereby minimizing protocol deviations and enhancing patient care. Sponsors of clinical trials value its implementation and recognize the substantial benefits it brings to the entire trial process. Consequently, many sponsors willingly provide funding to investigational sites that adopt MR as part of their standard practice, acknowledging its critical role in ensuring patient safety and maintaining data integrity throughout the course of clinical research studies.
Subject(s)
Medical Oncology , Medication Reconciliation , Humans , Medication Reconciliation/methods , Retrospective Studies , Patient Safety , Drug InteractionsABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To quantify and characterize the use of the Internet to search for information about medicines. METHODS: A random sample of subjects was interviewed in the city of Bordeaux (France) in November 2012 regarding their use of the Internet to find information on medicines. RESULTS: Among 103 interviewed subjects (median age: 38 years; 53.4% of men), 48 (46.6%) reported using the Internet to find information about medicines (58.3% of women). Two-thirds (66.7%) declared visiting consumer forums. However, nearly 60% reported to first consult a health professional. Three subjects had already bought medicines on the web and half (52.0%) of those who never made a purchase on the Internet would not trust the quality of the medicine. CONCLUSION: Even if purchasing medicines on the web remains rare, this media is frequently used to find information on medicines and most often on websites of questionable quality.
Subject(s)
Drug Information Services/statistics & numerical data , Internet/statistics & numerical data , Web Browser/statistics & numerical data , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Female , France , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Young AdultABSTRACT
UNLABELLED: To quantify and characterize the use of the Internet to search for information about medicines. METHODS: A random sample of subjects was interviewed in the city of Bordeaux (France) in November 2012 regarding their use of the Internet to find information on medicines. RESULTS: Among 103 interviewed subjects (median age: 38years; 53.4% of men), 48 (46.6%) reported using the Internet to find information about medicines (58.3% of women). Two-thirds (66.7%) declared visiting consumer forums. However, nearly 60% reported to first consult a health professional. Three subjects had already bought medicines on the web and half (52.0%) of those who never made a purchase on the Internet would not trust the quality of the medicine. CONCLUSION: Even if purchasing medicines on the web remains rare, this media is frequently used to find information on medicines and most often on websites of questionable quality.
