The University of Liverpool and Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen have launched a new website intended to promote safer prescribing and improve quality of care for cancer patients called www.cancer-druginteractions.org.
Building on comparable, world-renowned resources for HIV and Hepatitis, the website will host an easy-to-use, interaction checker, enabling rapid screening for drug-drug interactions (DDIs) with anti-cancer agents.
Users will be able to select from a list of anti-cancer agents – organised by generic name, trade name and indication – and a comprehensive list of commonly prescribed co-medications and see, at a glance, whether a DDI between selected drugs is likely. The rationale and quality of evidence behind each recommendation will also be clearly displayed.
Comprehensive
The team plans to produce a living, comprehensive resource – hosting up to 200 anti-cancer agents used to treat both solid and haematological cancers – which will be rolled out over the next three to five years.
DDIs are a vital consideration for patients undergoing cancer therapy and the health professionals treating them.
Cancer patients are at significant risk of DDIs since they can often be prescribed multiple drugs as part of their anti-cancer therapy regimen, in order to manage the side effects of therapy and, increasingly, in order to manage additional comorbidities. They may also use complementary and alternative medicines.
This new resource will address this challenge by improving DDI education and empowering Health Care Professionals to manage DDIs more effectively.
Improving education
Saye Khoo, Professor of Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Translational Medicine, co-founder of sister sites HIV and Hepatitis Drug Interactions and member of the Cancer Drug Interactions editorial team, said: “This site harnesses the methodology of Liverpool’s leading Drug Interactions resources and applies it to cancer: an area in great need of improved DDI management. We are delighted to be working with Radboud colleagues on this exciting project.”
Dr Nielka van Erp, Hospital Pharmacist and Clinical Pharmacologist at and co-Clinical Lead for project, said: “We have been developing the site since January 2017 and are very excited to share our progress with cancer healthcare professionals.
“Our aim is that the site will become integral to cancer drug prescribing, and we hope we have developed something of real clinical utility, which will improve the safe use of medication for cancer patients internationally”
The site is endorsed by the British Oncology Pharmacy Association.
Following this launch the team will be inviting feedback and welcomes any views and comments.
Please e-mail k.mcallister@liv.ac.uk to share your views or if you’d like to be added to the website’s mailing list.
