Validation of Educational Materials to Guide Patients on Breast Cancer Treatment with Hormone Therapy

Abstract

Introduction: The low adherence to treatment with oral antineoplastic agents reflects the need for measures to facilitate compliance with therapy, such as providing educational materials. Objective: Develop and validate leaflets guiding the use of tamoxifen, anastrozole and capecitabine for breast cancer treatment. Method: To define the leaflet´s content, the MEDLINE and UpToDate databases and national and international guidelines were consulted, adopting language accessible to the public. The validation was performed by oncology specialists through the Delphi method, considering the attributes of language, content and appearance. A satisfactory consensus was reached when the interquartile range (IR) was ≤ 1, obtained through a Likert scale ranging from 1 to 5. Results: The group of specialists was formed by 29 professionals. In the first round an IR of 1.43 was obtained; 1.14 and 1.43, and, in the second round, 0.71; 1.04 and 0.79 for language, content and appearance, respectively. Conclusion: It is expected that these tools promote better patient perception and adherence to treatment, contributing to self-management of pharmacotherapy.