Testing Proves Usefulness of Avalere Shared Decision-Making Tool to Women with Advanced Breast Cancer

  • This page as PDF

Summary

In 2018, Avalere partnered with CancerCare and Gabrielle Rocque, an oncologist at the University of Alabama Birmingham School of Medicine, to develop the Preparation for Shared Decision Making (PFSDM) tool.

We designed the PFSDM tool to help women with advanced breast cancer prepare to communicate with their clinicians and engage in decision-making that aligns with their personal preferences.

In 2019, Avalere validated the tool for its usability and acceptability (i.e., comprehensibility, amount of information, and suitability for decision-making) through surveys and in-depth interviews with 30 women with stages III and IV advanced breast cancer. The table below describes the diverse population of women with whom we worked.

In the chart pack, we present a summary of the results from our surveys. The survey data demonstrate that 90–100% of surveyed patients found the tool understandable, valuable, containing the right amount of information, and useful in preparing them for decision-making conversations with their doctors. All 30 patients agreed that they “value the guidance provided in this tool.” The full validation study—informed by the qualitative data from our interviews—will be analyzed and published separately.

Summary of Participant Demographics
Participant Characteristic Participant % (n)
Age
25 to 54 63% (19)
55 or older 37% (11)
Race/Ethnicity
White 50% (15)
Black or African American 28% (8)
Hispanic, Latino, or of Spanish Origin 13% (4)
Asian 7% (2)
Other (e.g., biracial) 3% (1)
Education
High school graduate/equivalent or some college 46% (14)
College graduate 54% (16)
Income
Less than $50,000 40% (12)
$50,000 to $99,999 20% (6)
$100,000 or more 40% (12)
Insurance Type
Insurance through employer 57% (17)
Medicaid 17% (5)
Medicare 10% (3)
Other government program (e.g., TRICARE) 7% (2)
Self-purchased insurance 7% (2)
Other 3% (1)

Learn more about the tool and its development process.

In addition to developing and validating the Preparation for Shared Decision Making tool, Avalere also developed consensus-based recommendations to advance the patient centricity of value assessment frameworks. These recommendations will be released tomorrow, May 30.

To receive Avalere updates, connect with us.

From beginning to end, our team synergy
produces measurable results. Let's work together.

Sign up to receive more insights about Women's Health
Please enter your email address to be notified when new Women's Health insights are published.

Back To Top