Confusing leaflets put patients off medication, reports Cancer Research UK

Patients could stop taking their medicine if the risks of possible side effects are not clearly explained, says a study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology, August 10.

Unclear medicine leaflets lead patients to overestimate the risk of side effects by up to 50 per cent ' and can influence their decision about whether to take prescribed medication. Researchers questioned 285 visitors to Cancer Research UK's patient information web site, CancerHelp.

They found that people interpreted the risk of having side effects differently, when percentages were used as in: '20% of patients will have side effects' or when words were used such as common, very common or uncommon. But they were much more likely to have an accurate understanding of the risks when they were described as 'one in five people may have side effects'.