- Science
- Clinical Trials
- Guide to Clinical Trials Your participation makes a difference
- Clinical Trials in Children Designed to improve kids' health
- Data and Results Sharing our Results
- Integrity and Transparency Building Trust
- Diversity Equity and Representation
- Plain Language Study Results Trial Result Summaries
- Expanded Access & Compassionate Use Possible Treatment Options
- Find a Trial
- Areas of Focus
- Rare Disease Smaller populations but big impact
- Internal Medicine Extending lifespans worldwide
- Inflammation & Immunology Treatment at the molecular level
- Vaccines Preventing the spread of infections
- Oncology The science of optimism
- Anti Infectives Combatting an evolving risk
- Areas of Innovation
- Gene Therapy Breakthroughs become treatments
- Medicinal Sciences The next generation of science
- Precision Medicine Developing tailored medicines
- Maternal Immunization Protecting newborns at the start
- mRNA Technology Unleashing the next wave of scientific innovations
- Diseases & Conditions
- Coronavirus Resources
- Product Pipeline
- Research Sites
- Clinical Trials
- Products
- How Drugs are Made
- Branded vs. Generic Learn the difference
- Biologics & Biosimilars Cures found in nature
- Commitment to Quality Maintaining the highest standards
- Global Supply Strategic manufacturing locations
- Manufacturing Sites Where medicine is made in the U.S.
- Medicine Safety
- Health Literacy Learning to be well
- Treatment Choices Learning about treatment decisions
- Partnering With Patients Helping others by reporting side effects
- Tips for Patients Preventing medication errors
- Reporting Adverse Events
- Counterfeiting Preventing medication errors
- Safety Data Sheets
- Product List
- Product Contacts
- PfizerPro for Professionals
- Patient Assistance Programs
- Distributors
- How Drugs are Made
- Stories
- Newsroom
- About
- People
- Executives Our senior-most leadership
- Board Members The people steering our company
- Scientists Our experts making discoveries
- Patient Stories Our patients
- Colleague Stories Our colleagues
- Responsibility
- Ethics & Compliance Each of us is responsible
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Everyone has something to offer
- EHS Governance
- Environmental Sustainability Our responsiblity to the environment
- Global Impact Meeting urgent needs worldwide
- Health & Safety
- Human Rights Furthering dignity and worth
- Intellectual Property The benefits of fair competition
- Patient Advocacy & Engagement Putting Patients First
- Misinformation
- Programs & Policies
- Grants Support for independent research
- Political Partnership Supporting like-minded organizations
- Working with Healthcare Professionals Collaboration to improve lives
- Prescription Value & Pricing How to lower patient costs
- Privacy Principles Commitment to personal data privacy
- Ready for Cures Improving Access to Medicines
- Transparency in Grants Committed to Disclosure
- Investors
- Investors Overview Information for stockholders
- Why Invest Why to join us in our mission
- Events & Presentations Calendar of upcoming events
- Financial Reports Quarterly reports and more
- Investor News Announcements about our performance
- Stock Information Charts and data
- Shareholder Services Information on stock transactions
- Corporate Governance
- Corporate Governance Overview Gaining insight into our performance
- Board Committees & Charters Defining the corporate structure
- The Pfizer Board Policies Ensuring ethical leadership
- Corporate Governance FAQs Learn more about our approach
- Contact Our Directors Email any of our Directors
- Purpose
- History
- Careers
- Partners
- People
Making good treatment choices
How do people decide whether or not to take a medicine?
When patients and healthcare providers think through the available treatment options, they consider the benefits and risks of each option. Benefits are the favorable effects and risks are the unfavorable effects. It is also important to understand how likely a patient is to experience any of these effects.
Making good treatment choices with your healthcare team
Understand the benefits and risks of medicines1
All medicines have benefits and risks. 2
Benefits of a medicine are favorable effects and risks of a medicine are unfavorable effects that can happern when you take a medicine. 2
- Benefits of taking a medicine might include, for example
- Improving sleep
- Treating an infection
- Preventing a heart attack
- Risks of taking a medicine might be, for example
- Mild like most headaches
- More serious like kidney damage
- And, rarely, death
When your healthcare team talks about the benefits and risks of your medicine, they use the product information to help you make good choices about your treatment options.
There are potential risks if you do not take medicine as prescribed. 2
Taking medicines incorrectly can interfere with the ability of medicines to treat many diseases. 3
You and your healthcare team must always weight the benefits and risks in order to choose the treatment that is right for you.
Test your risk for heart disease with this short quiz.
This is just an example showing how different people may have different risks. 4
Viewing Risk
Viewing Risk
People may thing of risk differently. 5
Would you feel safe...
The way you think about these and other activities
may be different from how other people think about them.
It depends on many things such as: 6
Understand Medicine Risk
Understanding your risk 7,8
Understanding benefits and risks can help you make important decisions about your health and treatment.
Imagine reading this headline online or in a newspaper:
That may be alarming at first glance — but what if the headline said:
Both headlines are talking about the same event.
The first headline is describing a relative risk, which examines the risk of an event happening to people who take a medicine compared to those who do not.
As you can see, relative risk and absolute risk are two different ways of looking at risk.
You and your healthcare team should discuss absolute and relative risk as they apply to you.
Your risk of a side effect may be different from someone else who is taking the same medicine. 9 For example, some medicines have a greater risk of side effects among older adults.
It is important to talk with your healthcare team about your risks with a medicine. 10
Take action
When you meet with your healthcare team take action by asking these questions: 11
What are my treatment options?
What are the benefits and risks of each option?
What might happen if I wait to take this medicine or take no medicine?
What are the chances that these benefits and risks will happen to me?
Tell your healthcare team what risks and benefits are most important to you.
For more about communicating benefit and risk information
SOURCES
1www.nia.nih.gov/health/making-decisions-your-doctor
2www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/ucm079492.htm
3www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm164616.htm
4www.your-heart-health.com/en-US/risk---prevention/assess-your-risk.html
5www.nsc.org/learn/safety-knowledge/Pages/injury-facts-chart.aspx
6www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Report/2014/12/WC500178511.pdf
7www.fda.gov/RegulatoryInformation/Guidances/ucm127509.htm
8http://ecp.acponline.org/janfeb00/primer.htm
9https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/10/understanding-health-risks
10www.fda.gov/drugs/resourcesforyou/consumers/ucm143566.htm
11Shepherd et al. Three questions that patients can ask to improve the quality of information physicians give about treatment options: A cross-over trial. Pat Ed Couns 2011; 84: 379-385.