Characteristics of Breast Cancer Patients Who Refused Conventional Treatment in a Teaching Hospital in Southwestern Nigeria

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Background Patients’ adherence to treatment recommendations is in the form of a spectrum: complete adherence or total rejection of the offered standard treatments. The aim of this study was to describe the characteristics of breast cancer patients who refused standard treatments in order to engender a focused intervention. Methods This was a retrospective study of breast cancer patients from 2017-2022. Data generated were analyzed using SPSS version 23.0. The results were presented using descriptive statistics. Inferential statistics for subgroup analysis was by chi-square test or risk difference with confidence intervals Results Among 343 patients, 86 (25% (95% CI 21-30) did not initiate conventional oncologic treatment. All were females and their age range was 33–83 years (mean, 49.9±12.0 years). The majority of the women were married (73%), educated (79%), low-income earners (69%), rural dwellers (63%) with advanced disease (81%). None of the patients had government insurance. The mean duration of symptoms was 11.9±9.7 months. Among 71patients with vital information, 50 (70% (95%CI 58-71) were confirmed dead in the last 3 years. The probability of death within 3 years was 38% (95%CI 8.0-68%) and was higher among those diagnosed as late-stage disease. Conclusions A large number of patients still fail to accept conventional treatments after breast cancer diagnosis. Understanding the patients’ characteristics may be necessary to recognize situations where active education and support can help patients accept standard treatment thereby prolonging survival.

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