pdf: Summaries for Patients - Surrogate Decision Makers’ Interpretation of Prognostic Information

Surrogate Decision Makers’ Interpretation of Prognostic Information

What are the implications of the study?

Inaccurate interpretations of doctors’ prognostications arise partly from optimistic biases rather than simply from misunderstandings. Helping surrogates attain realistic expectations about patients’ likely outcomes is more complex than just giving clear information.

update with patient/consumer/public responses: Patients With Unrealistic Expectations - NYTimes.com

The culture of faith and hope. Patients' justifications for their high estimations of expected therapeutic benefit when enrolling in early phase oncology trials (abstract)

BACKGROUND:
Patients' estimates of their chances of therapeutic benefit from participation in early phase trials greatly exceed historical data. Ethicists worry that this therapeutic misestimation undermines the validity of informed consent.

CONCLUSIONS:
Expressions of high expected therapeutic benefit had little to do with reporting knowledge and more to do with expressing optimism. These results have implications for understanding how to obtain valid consent from participants in early phase clinical trials.

Associations Among Cancer Survivorship Discussions, Patient and Physician Expectations, and Receipt of Follow-Up Care - JCO abstract

Note: abstract - 1)  pay-per-view/subscription journal; 2) selected key points:  total study # of patients= 431; breast cancer responses = 52%; gyn cancers = 4%; study did not break down differing gyn cancers; caucasian =94%