Systematic analysis of chemotherapy agents for home-based administration.

Abstract

e14012 Background: Improvement in supportive care medications, feasibility of outpatient management, and regulatory changes have led to a dramatic shift in the primary location of chemotherapy delivery from the inpatient setting to outpatient infusion centers. Over the last decade, centers in Europe and Canada have taken the next logical step – home based chemotherapy infusion. To our knowledge there is no systematic large scale initiative that has transitioned chemotherapy to the home in the United States. In order to implement a home based chemotherapy infusion program, we systematically scored anti-neoplastic agents for ease of administration. Methods: We reviewed all anti-neoplastic agents administered at our infusion center. Characteristics of each medication that could be a barrier to home infusion were identified. These included route and duration of administration, vesicant status, emetogenic potential, and duration of stability at room temperature. Scoring was determined by a multi-disciplinary team of pharmacists and oncologists (see Table). Higher scores indicated greater potential for home administration. Results: We reviewed 100 medications. The highest possible score was 8; the lowest possible score was -4. Agents ranged with scores from 8 (fulvestrant) to -1 (dactinomycin), with a median score of 4. The mode score was 3 (24 medications). The largest factor lowering the ease of administration score was stability at room temperature; score of -2 and -1 in 19 and 18 medications respectively. Conclusions: It is feasible to administer the majority of our chemotherapeutic agents in the home setting. The biggest barrier to administration at home is stability of medications at room temperature. This issue can be addressed by transporting and storing the medication in a refrigerated container. Expectedly, injectable drugs and medications with short infusion times that are stable at room temperature would be the easiest to administer in the home. Further analysis in ongoing to assess the financial feasibility and establishment of our home based program. [Table: see text]