Drug-related problems among esophageal, gastric and colorectal cancer patients at the National and referral hospital in Kenya

Introduction Cancer therapy has remarkable potential for drug-related problems due to the high cytotoxicity and narrow therapeutic index of most anti-neoplastic regimens. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies on drug-related problems in patients with gastrointestinal cancer in Kenya. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the prevalence, types and predictors of drug-related problems among gastrointestinal cancer patients at Kenyatta National Hospital. Methods A cross-sectional study was used to assess the prevalence of drug-related problems among a random sample of 160 esophageal, 103 gastric, and 96 colorectal cancer patients. Data were collected using a researcher-administered questionnaire and data abstraction tool after training the data collectors. Patient-specific details such as socio-demographic features, histological cancer types, cancer stage, comorbidity types, and treatment regimen were recorded after the review of medical records and patient interviews. The potential of drug-related problems was determined as per the standard guidelines. The data were entered and analysed using version 26.0 SPSS statistical software. Results Most esophageal (51.9%), gastric (59.2%), and colorectal (62.5%) cancer patients had a high prevalence of drug-related problems. The need for additional drug therapy and adverse drug reactions were the predominant categories of drug-related problems. Most adverse drug reactions identified had possible categories of causality score, mild severity levels, and definitely preventable types of adverse drug reactions among all gastrointestinal cancer patients. Comorbidity and advanced-stage disease were significant predictors of drug-related problems. Conclusions Drug-related problems were prevalent among gastrointestinal cancer patients in our setting. Comorbidity and advanced stages of disease were significant predictors of drug-related problems.