Evaluation of oncology drugs prescriptions and pharmacist interventions at an oncology and hematology service

IntroductionThe evaluation of antineoplastic drug prescriptions by oncology pharmacists represents a critical step in ensuring safe and effective cancer treatment. This process requires access to essential and readily available patient and treatment information, which facilitates accurate protocol validation, dose calculation, drug preparation, and identification of discrepancies requiring intervention.MethodsA cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted at a Brazilian military hospital to analyze antineoplastic prescriptions of patients treated between November 2020 and June 2021. Data analysis was performed in September 2021. The primary objective was to quantify pharmaceutical interventions performed during prescription evaluation.ResultsA total of 299 prescriptions were reviewed. Among these, 33% (n = 98) lacked information on the patient's date of birth, 45.8% (n = 137) did not include International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes, 87% (n = 260) were missing data on treatment cycles, and 93% (n = 278) lacked cancer staging information. Pharmaceutical interventions were required in 195 prescriptions (65.2%), with the majority (64.1%; n = 125) related to the omission of drug infusion times.ConclusionsPharmaceutical interventions in the evaluation of antineoplastic prescriptions played a pivotal role in enhancing treatment accuracy and safety. The findings underscore the need for process optimization and system improvements to ensure complete and standardized prescriptions, ultimately contributing to safer oncology practices.