Can we improve therapeutic compliance in cancer patients? report of a cross-sectional case series study in Morocco

Abstract

Therapeutic compliance (TC) refers to the compliance of a patient to the prescriptions and recommendations of a doctor. Patients with cancer often exhibit unsatisfactory TC. The objective of our study was to assess TC levels in cancer patients and identify predictors of poor compliance. We conducted a cross-sectional study in March 2023 at the oncology center, where the vast majority of medical activity is performed in the day hospital. TC was measured using a questionnaire or survey. Various parameters were analyzed to identify predictive factors of poor therapeutic compliance. Our study included 175 cancer patients with a mean age of 55 years. The study revealed that 85% exhibited good compliance (GC) as indicated by the confidence interval [8.500 ± 0.075], signifying patients who consistently adhered to their medication schedule. Conversely, 15% demonstrated poor compliance (PC), as indicated by the confidence interval [0.825 ± 0.750]. Compliance status was assessed by considering patients who adhered to the prescribed medication timing as good compliance (GC) and those who did not adhere as poor compliance (PC). The analysis of our study results indicated that poor therapeutic compliance was associated with low socioeconomic and educational levels. Therefore, it is important to utilize all available resources to improve therapeutic compliance. The majority of factors contributing to poor compliance can be mitigated through effective coordination between the patient and their support network.