Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
Psychooncology. 2011 Jan;20(1):28-35. doi: 10.1002/pon.1699.
Genomic recurrence risk test results now inform clinical decisions about adjuvant treatment for women with early-stage breast cancer. We sought to understand patients' knowledge of these tests and correlates of their knowledge.
Participants in this cross-sectional study were 78 women, treated for early-stage, estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer with 0-3 positive lymph nodes, whose medical records indicated they received Oncotype DX testing earlier. We mailed a questionnaire that assessed knowledge of genomic recurrence risk testing (13 item scale, alpha=0.83) and reviewed medical charts of consenting patients.
Knowledge about genomic recurrence risk testing was low (mean knowledge score=67%, SD=0.23). Low knowledge scores were more commonly due to responses of 'don't know' than incorrect answers. Most women (91%) clearly understood that test results can aid decisions about chemotherapy, and few (22%) understood that the test's estimate of the chance of metastasis assumes the patient is receiving hormone therapy. Higher knowledge about genomic recurrence risk testing was associated with higher education, reading ability, and numeracy. Knowledge was higher among women who recalled receiving both verbal and printed information about the test and among women who had active roles in deciding about their treatments. Higher knowledge was also associated with having fewer concerns about genomic testing.
Among early-stage breast cancer patients who received Oncotype DX, we found low knowledge about many aspects of genomic recurrence risk testing. Research is needed to understand testing information provided to patients and best practices for patient education.
基因组复发风险测试结果现在为早期乳腺癌患者的辅助治疗提供临床决策依据。我们试图了解患者对这些测试的了解程度，以及其知识的相关性。
本横断面研究的参与者是 78 名女性，她们患有早期、雌激素受体阳性乳腺癌，淋巴结 0-3 阳性，病历表明她们接受了 Oncotype DX 检测。我们邮寄了一份问卷，评估了患者对基因组复发风险测试的知识（13 项量表，α=0.83），并查阅了同意参加研究的患者的病历。
患者对基因组复发风险测试的了解程度较低（平均知识得分=67%，SD=0.23）。低知识得分主要是由于回答“不知道”而不是错误答案。大多数女性（91%）清楚地知道测试结果可以帮助决定是否进行化疗，很少有女性（22%）理解该测试对转移概率的估计是基于患者正在接受激素治疗。对基因组复发风险测试的了解程度与受教育程度、阅读能力和计算能力有关。对测试有更多了解的女性更有可能回忆起收到过关于测试的口头和书面信息，并且在决定自己的治疗方案方面更积极主动。较高的知识水平也与对基因组测试的担忧较少有关。
在接受过 Oncotype DX 检测的早期乳腺癌患者中，我们发现他们对基因组复发风险测试的许多方面了解较少。需要研究以了解向患者提供的测试信息和患者教育的最佳实践。
