Self-Medication during and after Cancer: A French Nation-Wide Cross-Sectional Study.

Cancers (Basel)

UMR1107, NEURO-DOL, INSERM, Direction de la Recherche Clinique et de l'Innovation, Université Clermont Auvergne, CHU Clermont-Ferrand, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France.

Published: June 2023

(1) Background: Little data are available in Western countries regarding self-medication practices in the context of cancer. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of self-medication practices during (cancer patients) and after cancer (cancer survivors). (2) Methods: This multicenter, cross-sectional, and online study was designed to assess self-medication prevalence. Other objectives were explored, notably the medication types, the perceived risks, and the relation with symptoms and quality of life. (3) Results: Among the 518 patients analyzed, 56.4% declared they practiced self-medication. Dietary supplements and pain medications were used by more than half of the patients. Self-medication was practiced in order to manage the adverse effects of anticancer therapies (63.8%), for which pain was the leading indication (39%), and to improve the efficacy of anticancer therapies (43.8%, cancer patients). Patients believed that self-medication could not lead to drug interactions with anticancer therapies (84.9%, cancer patients), or to adverse effects (84.6%, cancer patients and survivors). Self-medication practices were associated with altered social functioning, pain, insomnia, and financial difficulties. (4) Conclusions: Self-medication was performed by more than half of the responders (ongoing or past cancer) and could be a marker of the undermanagement of cancer and treatment-related adverse effects.

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10296279PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/cancers15123190DOI Listing

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