Open AccessThe Uro-Oncology Multi-disciplinary team (MDT) Clinic – Clinical and Patient-Reported Outcomes From Implementing a New Model of Care
Author(s) -
Alvin Yuanming Lee,
Raj Tiwari,
Shuhui Neo,
Daanesh Huned,
Arjunan Kumaran,
Chloe Li Wen Lim,
Melvin L.K. Chua,
Ravindran Kanesvaran,
Lui Shiong Lee
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
proceedings of singapore healthcare
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2059-2329
pISSN - 2010-1058
DOI - 10.1177/20101058211055222
Subject(s) - medicine , guideline , prostate cancer , oncology , cancer , pathology
A multi-disciplinary approach has often been advocated to improve the delivery of oncological care, as compared to a mono-disciplinary and linear approach. Our study elucidates the clinical and patient-reported outcomes from a urologic-oncology multi-disciplinary team (MDT) clinic in a regional general hospital.Materials and Methods Patients who attended a uro-oncology MDT clinic which was started in January 2019 were identified. This service was specifically catered to patients who were histologically diagnosed with urological cancers. The MDT service comprised a multi-disciplinary tumour board followed by outpatient clinical consults with representatives from urology, medical and radiation oncology. Demographic variables, disease characteristics and treatment rendered were analysed. A survey was administered to assess patient satisfaction.Results Fifty patients with a median age of 70 years with complete case records were identified. The cancer types included prostate cancers (46%), urothelial cancers (26%) and renal cell carcinoma (12%) as the most frequent urological cancers. The median time from MDT to therapy initiation was 8 days. Among those with prostate, urothelial, renal and testicular malignancies, 71% (32/45) of our patients received treatment that were in accordance to guideline recommendations. A post-clinic survey showed that patients were satisfied with the information provided during the clinic and this also facilitated decision and time to initiation of therapy.Conclusion A multi-disciplinary service comprising a tumour board followed by a one-stop clinic provides patients with multi-disciplinary care, improved access to subsequent therapy, better time efficiency and high patient satisfaction scores. More studies are warranted to demonstrate its oncological outcomes.