Influence of Pharmacists’ Adherence Support System“FollowNavi^®” in Capecitabine Therapy

Objective: Follow-up by pharmacy pharmacists plays a crucial role in managing treatment schedules and reducing adverse events associated with cancer chemotherapy. In light of this, we developed the capecitabine module of“FollowNavi^®”, a LINE-based follow-up support system designed for medication guidance. Our objective was to assess the system’s effectiveness in reducing the severity of capecitabine therapy-induced hand-foot syndrome and improving medication adherence. Methods: A six-month follow-up was conducted using“Fol-lowNavi^®”among patients prescribed capecitabine between February 2021 and January 2022. The study’s primary endpoint was the incidence of hand-foot syndrome throughout the follow-up period. A survey was also conducted with patients and pharmacists to gather feedback on using“FollowNavi^®”. Results: Eight patients were included in the follow-up, and hand-foot syndrome was observed in 62.5％ of cases（CTCAE Grade 2 or PRO-CTCAE Moderate: 12.5％）. The time required for each“FollowNavi^®”session ranged from less than 5 minutes to 10 minutes. Furthermore, 66.7％ of patients expressed their desire to continue using“FollowNavi^®”after the completion of the study. Conclusion: Continuous follow-up with“FollowNavi^®”demonstrated a potential reduction in the severity of hand-foot syndrome among patients undergoing capecitabine treatment. Additionally, a questionnaire survey was conducted among patients and pharmacists revealed positive responses regarding the system’s usability.