Safety and cost-effectiveness of paclitaxel administered as a 1-hour infusion versus a 3-hour infusion for various malignancies.
This study challenges the current practice of administering paclitaxel for a variety of malignancies over 3 hours and documents the safety and cost-effectiveness of 1-hour administration in the outpatient setting. The authors investigated opportunities to save nursing time and costs in a cancer clinic without compromising patient safety. These savings are referred to as "opportunity-cost savings" that enable the clinic to schedule more patients during the time normally required to administer a 3-hour paclitaxel dose. Over a 2-year period, the authors were able to document significant time savings with no increase in adverse drug reactions.
Department of Pharmacy, University Campus., UMass Memorial Medical Center, 55 Lake Avenue North, Worcester, MA 01655, USA. gammond@ummhc.org
David C
DC
Gammon
Margaret W
MW
Lizotte
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D017239:Paclitaxel / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000191:economics; D012449:Safety; D013997:Time Factors
D017239:Paclitaxel