Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Jun 13:9:267-74.
doi: 10.2147/JMDH.S98345. eCollection 2016.

Effectiveness of a thoracic multidisciplinary clinic in the treatment of stage III non-small-cell lung cancer

Eliot L Friedman  1 , Robert J Kruklitis  2 , Brian J Patson  1 , Dennis M Sopka  3 , Michael J Weiss  4
Affiliations

Effectiveness of a thoracic multidisciplinary clinic in the treatment of stage III non-small-cell lung cancer

Eliot L Friedman et al. J Multidiscip Healthc. .

Abstract

Introduction: The Institute of Medicine, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the European Society of Medical Oncology promote a multidisciplinary approach for the treatment of cancer. Stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) represents a heterogeneous group of diseases necessitating coordination of care among medical, radiation, and surgical oncology. The optimal care of stage III NSCLC underscores the need for a multidisciplinary approach.

Methods: From tumor registry data, we identified all cases of stage III NSCLC seen at Lehigh Valley Health Network between March 2010 and March 2013. The care received by patients when seen in the thoracic multidisciplinary clinic (MDC) was compared with the care received when not seen in the thoracic MDC.

Results: All patients seen in the MDC, compared to <50% of patients seen outside the MDC, were evaluated by more than one physician prior to beginning the treatment. Time to initiate treatment was shorter in MDC patients than in non-MDC patients. Patients seen in the MDC had a greater concordance with clinical pathways. A greater percentage of patients seen in the thoracic MDC had pathologic staging of their mediastinum. Patients seen in the MDC were more likely to receive all of their care at Lehigh Valley Health Network.

Conclusion: Multidisciplinary care is essential in the treatment of patients with stage III NSCLC. Greater utilization of MDCs for this complex group of patients will result in more efficient coordination of care, pretreatment evaluation, and therapy, which in turn should translate to improve patients' outcomes.

Keywords: clinical pathways; lung cancer; multidisciplinary care.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Time intervals to initiation of treatment. Abbreviations: MDC, multidisciplinary clinic; NS, not statistically significant.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of MDC and non-MDC patients in clinical treatment planning. Abbreviations: MDC, multidisciplinary clinic; LVHN, Lehigh Valley Health Network.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparison of overall survival – MDC vs non-MDC patients. Abbreviation: MDC, multidisciplinary clinic.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Levit BL, Nass S, Ganz PA, editors. Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2013. - PubMed
    1. American Society of Clinical Oncology European Society for Medical Oncology. ASCO-ESMO consensus statement on quality cancer care. Ann Oncol. 2006;17(7):1063–1064. - PubMed
    1. Tripathy D. Multidisciplinary care for breast cancer: barriers and solutions. Breast J. 2003;9(1):60–63. - PubMed
    1. Frost MH, Arvizu RD, Jayakumar S, Schoonover A, Novotny P, Zahasky K. A multidisciplinary healthcare delivery model for women with breast cancer: patient satisfaction and physical and psychosocial adjustment. Oncol Nurs Forum. 1999;26(10):1673–1680. - PubMed
    1. Horvath LE, Yordan E, Malhotra D, et al. Multidisciplinary care in the oncology setting: historical perspective and data from lung and gynecology multidisciplinary clinics. J Oncol Pract. 2010;6(6):e21–e26. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources