Photo courtesy of CDC
Prescription drugs
A new analysis indicates that cancer survivors may be more likely than the rest of the US population to change their prescription drug use due to financial concerns.
The study showed that cancer survivors were more likely to delay filling prescriptions, skip medication doses, request cheaper medications from their doctors, and engage in other cost-saving behaviors.
However, this was only true for non-elderly individuals.
There was no significant difference in cost-saving behaviors between elderly (age 65 and older) cancer survivors and elderly individuals in the general population.
Ahmedin Jemal, DVM, PhD, of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, Georgia, and his colleagues reported these findings in Cancer.
The researchers used 2011-2014 data from the National Health Interview Survey, an annual household interview survey conducted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The survey included 8931 cancer survivors and 126,287 individuals without a cancer history.
Among non-elderly adults, 31.6% of those who had been diagnosed with cancer recently and 27.9% of those who had been diagnosed at least 2 years earlier reported a change in prescription drug use for financial reasons, compared with 21.4% of individuals without a history of cancer (P<0.05).
“Specifically, non-elderly cancer survivors were more likely to skip medication, delay filling a prescription, ask their doctor for lower-cost medication, and use alternative therapies for financial reasons compared with non-elderly individuals without a cancer history,” Dr Jemal said.
On the other hand, changes in prescription drug use for financial reasons were generally similar between elderly cancer survivors and elderly individuals without a cancer history.
The proportion of elderly individuals who changed their drug use for financial reasons was 24.9% among those who had been diagnosed with cancer recently, 21.8% among those who had been diagnosed at least 2 years earlier, and 20.4% among those without a history of cancer.
The researchers said these results could be explained by uniform healthcare coverage through Medicare.
The team also said their findings may have significant policy implications.
“Healthcare reforms addressing the financial burden of cancer among survivors, including the escalating cost of prescription drugs, should consider multiple comorbid conditions and high-deductible health plans, and the working poor,” Dr Jemal said.
“Our findings also have implications for doctor and patient communication about the financial burden of cancer when making treatment decisions, especially on the use of certain drugs that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars but with very small benefit compared with alternative and more affordable drugs.”
