Open AccessA prospective study of the clinical impact of a multidisciplinary head and neck tumor board
Author(s) -
Wheless Stephen A.,
McKinney Kibwei A.,
Zanation Adam M.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
otolaryngology–head and neck surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.232
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1097-6817
pISSN - 0194-5998
DOI - 10.1016/j.otohns.2010.07.020
Subject(s) - medicine , institutional review board , multidisciplinary approach , malignancy , head and neck cancer , head and neck , stage (stratigraphy) , prospective cohort study , cancer , radiation treatment planning , radiology , radiation therapy , surgery , paleontology , social science , sociology , biology
OBJECTIVE There have been no studies undertaken on the effect of the multidisciplinary head and neck tumor board on treatment planning. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of the multidisciplinary tumor board in altering diagnosis, stage, and treatment plan in patients with head and neck tumors. STUDY DESIGN Case series with planned data collection. SETTING Comprehensive cancer center and tertiary academic hospital. SUBJECTS AND METHODS A prospective study of the discussions concerning 120 consecutive patients presented at a multidisciplinary head and neck tumor board was performed. As each patient was presented, a record was made of the “pre‐conference” diagnosis, stage, and treatment plan. After case discussion, the “post‐conference” diagnosis, stage, and treatment plan were recorded. Results are compared between malignant and benign tumor cohorts. RESULTS The study population comprised 120 patients with new presentations of head and neck tumors: 84 malignancies and 36 benign tumors. Approximately 27 percent of patients had some change in tumor diagnosis, stage, or treatment plan. Change in treatment was significantly more common in cases of malignancy, occurring in 24 percent of patients versus six percent of benign tumors ( P = 0.0199). Changes in treatment were also noted to be largely escalations in management ( P = 0.0084), adding multimodality care. CONCLUSION A multidisciplinary tumor board affects diagnostic and treatment decisions in a significant number of patients with newly diagnosed head and neck tumors. The multidisciplinary approach to patient care may be particularly effective in managing malignant tumors, in which treatment plans are most frequently altered.