Souliotis Kyriakos, Golna Christina, Nikolaidi Sofia, Dreden Patrick V, Vatheia Georgia, Gerotziafas Grigoris T
Department of Social and Education Policy, University of Peloponnese, Corinth, Greece.
Research Department, Health Policy Institute, Maroussi, Athens, Greece.
TH Open. 2022 Jan 17;6(2):e89-e95. doi: 10.1055/a-1742-0465. eCollection 2022 Apr.
Cancer-associated thrombosis (CAT) is the second cause of mortality after cancer itself. CAT is underestimated as a health challenge among oncologists, whereas the levels of awareness among patients and the public have not been systematically assessed and followed in the European Union countries. The Prospective Risk Assessment and Management of Patient with CAT (ROADMAP-CAT) Awareness study is an investigator-initiated, descriptive and nonexperimental study with a cross-sectional design and it explores CAT risk awareness among cancer patients and the general public in Greece to provide an impetus for health policy interventions and a benchmark against which impact of any future interventions may be assessed. A total of 1,003 participants aged above 18 years were contacted by phone after random selection from the national telephone catalogue. Participation was voluntary and completely anonymous, and a structured questionnaire was used to elicit responses. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25. Among respondents, almost one-third (32.3%) reported CAT awareness, while only one in five (21.7%) were aware of the signs and symptoms of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Among patients with a personal history of cancer or of VTE, 47 and 58%, respectively, were aware of CAT risk. Of those aware of the association, 35.2% identified their treating physician as the main source of information. The level of awareness did not significantly differ by responders' demographics. The ROADMAP-CAT Awareness study revealed very low levels of awareness on CAT and VTE risk both among the general public and cancer patients in Greece. Awareness of the signs and symptoms of VTE was also particularly low. Treating physicians are not actively engaging in educating their patients about CAT. Public awareness of the increased risk of VTE among cancer patients is critical to prevent and diagnose the disease early. It is imperative that a structured campaign supports medical professionals to take the time to increase awareness and educate their patients on this matter if to improve morbidity and mortality of cancer patients.
癌症相关血栓形成（CAT）是仅次于癌症本身的第二大致死原因。在肿瘤学家中，CAT作为一项健康挑战被低估了，而在欧盟国家，患者和公众的认知水平尚未得到系统评估和跟踪。
CAT患者前瞻性风险评估与管理（ROADMAP-CAT）认知研究是一项由研究者发起的、具有横断面设计的描述性非实验性研究，旨在探索希腊癌症患者和普通公众对CAT风险的认知，为卫生政策干预提供动力，并作为评估未来任何干预措施效果的基准。
从国家电话簿中随机抽取18岁以上的1003名参与者，通过电话进行联系。参与是自愿且完全匿名的，并使用结构化问卷获取回答。使用IBM SPSS 25版对数据进行分析。
在受访者中，近三分之一（32.3%）表示知晓CAT，而只有五分之一（21.7%）的人了解静脉血栓栓塞（VTE）的体征和症状。在有癌症或VTE个人病史的患者中，分别有47%和58%知晓CAT风险。在知晓这种关联的人中，35.2%将其主治医生视为主要信息来源。认知水平在不同受访者的人口统计学特征方面没有显著差异。
ROADMAP-CAT认知研究表明，希腊普通公众和癌症患者对CAT和VTE风险的认知水平都非常低。对VTE体征和症状的认知也特别低。主治医生没有积极地向患者宣传CAT相关知识。提高公众对癌症患者VTE风险增加的认知对于早期预防和诊断该疾病至关重要。如果要改善癌症患者的发病率和死亡率，必须开展一场结构化的宣传活动，支持医疗专业人员花时间提高认知并就此事对患者进行教育。
