Medication adherence with denosumab in patients with bone metastases from solid tumors treated in routine clinical settings: a retrospective study

PURPOSE: To describe (non)adherence with denosumab among patients with solid tumors and bone metastases. METHODS: This retrospective, observational study pooled data from two completed prospective, multicenter cohort studies (X-TREME; Study 240) in adult patients with bone metastases from primary breast, prostate, lung, kidney, or other solid cancer types and administered denosumab 120 mg in routine clinical practice in Germany and Central and Eastern Europe. The studies were conducted between May 2012 and May 2017; pooled analysis was completed in August 2021. Medication adherence was described according to a three-component consensus taxonomy: initiation (first-ever administration ≤ 90 days from bone metastasis diagnosis), implementation (actual vs prescribed dosing; optimal implementation = regular/consistent dosing), and persistence (≤ 60-day gap between administrations at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months). Descriptive analyses were conducted for each cancer type. RESULTS: The analysis included 1748 patients with solid tumors and bone metastases. Adherence with denosumab was generally high across the initiation, implementation, and persistence phases. Most patients experienced timely initiation (from 64.4% [kidney cancer] to 81.2% [breast cancer]) and optimal implementation (from 62.4% [lung cancer] to 72.5% [breast cancer]). The proportion of patients who were persistent with treatment at 6 months ranged from 41.4% (lung cancer) to 77.8% (prostate cancer). CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed variations by cancer type in the initiation, implementation, and persistence of denosumab in patients with solid tumors and bone metastases in routine clinical practice. Further cancer-specific studies are warranted to examine the determinants of (non)adherence with denosumab, and potential ways to improve medication adherence. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00520-022-07333-7.