Adherence to and persistence with oral oncolytic treatments (OOTs) remains suboptimal in patients with multiple myeloma (MM), according to a study published in Clinical Lymphoma, Myeloma & Leukemia. Abdallah Y. Nasar, MBA, PhD, and colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 19 studies, which included 27,129 patients with MM who were prescribed OOTs (ixazomib, lenalidomide, melphalan, panobinostat, pomalidomide, and thalidomide). The pooled proportion of adherent patients was 67.9%. Compared with those using prescription/dispensing data, this proportion was higher in self-reported, questionnaire-based studies (81.6% vs 61.0%). A pooled proportion of 35.8%, spanning five studies consisting of 15,363 patients, discontinued treatment. Issues linked with nonadherence included increasing age, lack of social support, polypharmacy, and higher comorbidity. “To achieve desired clinical outcomes, interventions to improve adherence and minimize discontinuation may be warranted,” the study authors wrote.
