Prescription pattern of anticancer medications in breast cancer treatment at komfo anokye teaching hospital (kath)

This paper aims to assess the prescription trends of anticancer drugs for breast cancer management among clients attending the prestigious Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Ghana. In this study, the types of anticancer drugs, the frequency of prescription, and the distribution of prescribed anticancer medications at different stages of breast cancer were assessed using a cross-sectional retrospective study conducted over six months in 2021. Information was carefully extracted from KATH’s e-computerized medical records on the backs of 69 clientele diagnosed with breast cancer. The mode of chemotherapeutic agents outlined in the work included Cyclophosphamide, Adriamycin, Paclitaxel, and the targeted therapy, Herceptin, in concordance with recent recommended trends in the management of oncological conditions. The frequency and regularity of these prescriptions and their correlations with demographic variables in patients, their cancer staging, and general details of treatments’ side effects were established. It was further shown that local treatment adheres to international protocols, whereby standard drugs for breast cancer therapy were used significantly throughout the stages. However, one of the research findings was that many patients were diagnosed at a late stage- stages IB and IV which affects treatment outcomes and was confirmed as an important area to be addressed. Furthermore, the research found high proportions of side effects, which include fatigue, hair loss, and gastrointestinal complications; hence, there is a need to incorporate better methods of managing supportive care. In conclusion, it can be said that KATH partially complies with EB Guidelines in the treatment of breast cancer through chemotherapy. Though the data strengthens the policy of compliance with EB guidelines in the treatment of breast cancer, there is an increased focus on early detection and education to reduce the number of patients diagnosed at an advanced stage. Another is patient education and side effect management, which forms further crucial economic interventions in promoting favourable treatment results and better patient quality of life. This research provides the groundwork for subsequent intervention studies that target improvement of the quality of breast cancer care at KATH and other comparable centers.