Physicians’ experience in blood supply shortages and the top factors that impact the clinical, economic, and humanistic outcomes of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes in 5 European countries

Abstract

Objective

Blood supply shortages may create unnecessary burden, including treatment delay, worsened quality of life, or increased healthcare resource utilization in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). This study examined physicians’ experience with blood supply shortages in the MDS population. Additionally, physicians’ perspectives on the factors that impact clinical, economic, and humanistic outcomes of patients with MDS were investigated.

Methods

A total of 378 physicians primarily specializing in hematology/oncology across the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain completed the survey (n ≈ 75 in each country). Physicians answered questions regarding adequacy of blood supply for patients with MDS who require red blood cell (RBC) transfusions and identified factors impacting the clinical, economic, and humanistic outcomes in the MDS population.

Results

Over 65% of physicians reported that their patients with MDS requiring RBC transfusions encountered RBC transfusion delays due to blood supply shortage. Among physicians who reported delays, 13.8% of patients were impacted, ranging from 11.0% in Spain to 19.4% in Italy. On average, patients experienced a 4.2-day delay in receiving RBC transfusions due to blood supply shortages, and 16.7% of patients required additional healthcare provider visits. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status, threshold hemoglobin levels, and age were the top factors reported by more than two-thirds of physicians that impact outcomes of patients with MDS.

Conclusion

Our findings support the need for new treatments in MDS that reduce transfusions and thus blood supply needs, and that would have a beneficial effect on clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes.

Keywords:

• Blood supply shortage
• myelodysplastic syndromes
• physician survey
• transfusion

Transparency

Declaration of funding

The study was sponsored by Bristol Myers Squibb.

Declaration of financial/other relationships

SG, HC, and JG are employees of Cerner Enviza (formerly known as Kantar Health), which has provided consultancy for Bristol Myers Squibb. AGK and JT have provided consultancy to Bristol Myers Squibb. SJ and DT are employees of, and have equity ownership in, Bristol Myers Squibb. Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

All named authors meet the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) criteria for authorship for this article, take responsibility for the integrity of the work as a whole, and have given their approval for this version to be published.

Acknowledgements

Authors would like to thank Dr. Ann-Marie Waldron (Cerner Enviza GmbH, Munich) for medical writing assistance. The authors received editorial assistance in the preparation of this manuscript from Eilish McBurnie, PhD, of Excerpta Medica, supported by Bristol Myers Squibb. The authors are fully responsible for all content and editorial decisions for this manuscript.

Data availability statement

Bristol Myers Squibb policy on data sharing may be found at https://www.bms.com/researchers-and-partners/independent-research/data-sharing-request-process.html.

Ethics approval

The study protocol was approved with exemption status by Pearl Institutional Review Board (Indianapolis, IN, USA). Participants gave informed consent before participation.