Self-management of immunomodulatory drug treatment in multiple myeloma patients

Objective Immunomodulatory drugs (IMIDs: thalidomide, lenalidomide and pomalidomide) are widely used in patients with multiple myeloma (MM). The aim of our study was to validate a questionnaire to evaluate the self-capacity of MM patients to manage IMID treatment including side effects. Methods We used a method adapted from the recommendations of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) to validate a French questionnaire for patients with MM treated with IMIDs. Results The face validity was evaluated in 15 patients and the construct validity in 56 patients. For discriminant validity, two groups were constituted by gender and depending on whether they had a previous IMID treatment. The median questionnaire score was 11.33/16 (IQR 9.75-12.08) with a minimum of 5.2 and a maximum of 14.75. For discriminant validity, a statistically significant difference was observed for patient capacity to contact healthcare professionals in specific situations and drug intake in case of swallowing disorder. Convergent validity showed an acceptable reliability for the scores of the different questions. Conclusion The questionnaire has shown to be a valid tool for the assessment of the adherence and side-effect management skills for MM patients with IMID treatment.