Pattern of drug use by advanced cancer patients followed at home.
The aim of this study was to document the drugs most commonly prescribed to control symptoms in advanced cancer patients being followed at home. We analyzed data for 128 patients admitted to a home palliative care program from January 1993 to January 1995. All patients were followed at home until death by a team consisting of doctors and nurses, and were given two or three medical examinations a week. The most frequently prescribed drugs were analgesics and drugs commonly used to prevent NSAID-induced gastric toxicity. Slow-release morphine was the analgesic used most often. Most patients received more than four drugs. Younger people received morphine more often than did older patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Drug monitoring is a useful audit tool for verifying the quality and quantity of drugs prescribed for advanced cancer patients being followed at home. Pharmacological usage should be reviewed periodically and should reflect evidence-based practice.
Mercadante
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Pain Relief and Palliative Care Unit, La Maddalena Clinic for Cancer, Pain Relief and Palliative Care, Palermo, Italy.
Fulfaro
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F
Casuccio
A
A
D000368:Aged; D016903:Drug Monitoring; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008485:Medical Audit; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*