Lung Cancer
Medication Adherence
Stay on track and on time with all medications
Advances in cancer treatment have made oral therapies (pills) an option for many types of cancer. If your health care provider prescribes an oral therapy, you will likely enjoy the convenience of taking a pill instead of going for treatment that may take up to several hours. Along with that convenience, however, comes the responsibility of taking the therapy in the correct way.
Taking your medication exactly as prescribed by your doctor is called medication adherence, and it is extremely important in the treatment of NSCLC. Most cancer therapies are designed to maintain a specific level of drugs in your system for a certain time based on your cancer type and stage, your overall health, previous therapies and other factors. If your oral therapies are not taken as prescribed, or if you miss appointments for your IV infusions, injections or radiation therapy, the consequences can be serious — even life threatening.
A variety of tools can help you stay on track with medications and appointments:
- Write down when you take your medications and go to appointments.
- Talk to your pharmacist to ensure you understand how to take your medications.
- Use an alarm on your phone, clock or computer as a reminder.
- Enlist a caregiver to help remind you.
Download the Patient Resource Medication Journal to keep track of your medications at PatientResource.com/Medication_Journal
