The impact of COVID-19 on breast cancer care: Delays in screening.

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (28_suppl) ◽  
pp. 130-130
Author(s):  
Amina Dhahri ◽  
Teshome Tegene

130 Background: Breast cancer (BC) screening is an integral part of cancer prevention. COVID-19 posed multiple obstacles on ensuring continuity of cancer care. The short and long-term outcomes of the pandemic on BC screening is unknown. The purpose of this study is to examine the challenges the pandemic has on mammogram completion using a granular measure of social economic deprivation: Area deprivation index (ADI). Methods: A Retrospective cohort study was conducted at an academic hospital system at the epicenter of COVID-19 pandemic comparing BC screening rates during the year of 2019 (pre-COVID19) and 2020 (COVID-19). For the year 2020, only charts between January-February and July-December were reviewed. March-June period was avoided as the USA declared a national emergency and the American Cancer Society recommended to temporarily pause cancer screening. The outcome variable was mammogram completion. The predictor variables were: COVID-19 period, race, insurance, age and ADI. ADI is a validated dataset that ranks census block groups based on socioeconomic deprivation (SED). Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank sum test were used to compare categorical and continuous variables by receipt of mammography. A multivariate logistic regression was used for associations between mammogram completion and the predictor variables. Results: A total of 694 patients were deemed eligible for BC screening in the year of 2019 (394) and 2020 (300). During the follow up period, only 106 and 30 patients from the pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 cohorts underwent BC screening, respectively. During the pandemic, 30/30 patients who completed their screening were African Americans and had a high SED. In a multivariable analysis, COVID-19 period is associated with 79% lower odds of mammogram completion (OR 0.21; 95% CI 0.13, 0.35). ADI and race were not associated with higher screening rates. Medicaid status is associated with higher odds of mammogram completion (OR 1.97; 95% CI 1.12, 3.47). Conclusions: COVID-19 caused significant disruption in BC screening. In an area with high SED and high COVID-19 infection rates, private insurance holders and white patients had low rates mammogram completion. One potential explanation is that these patients sought care elsewhere. [Table: see text]

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. e1304-e1314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Poggio ◽  
Marco Tagliamento ◽  
Massimo Di Maio ◽  
Valentino Martelli ◽  
Andrea De Maria ◽  
...  

PURPOSE: To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the attitudes and practice of Italian oncologists toward breast cancer care and related research activities. METHODS: A 29-question anonymous online survey was sent by e-mail to members of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology and the Italian Breast Cancer Study Group on April 3, 2020. Only medical oncologists (both those in training and specialists) were invited to complete the questionnaire. RESULTS: Out of 165 responding oncologists, 121 (73.3.%) worked in breast units. In the (neo)adjuvant setting, compared with before the emergency, fewer oncologists adopted weekly paclitaxel (68.5% v 93.9%) and a dose-dense schedule for anthracycline-based chemotherapy (43% v 58.8%) during the COVID-19 outbreak. In the metastatic setting, compared with before the emergency, fewer oncologists adopted first-line weekly paclitaxel for HER2-positive disease (41.8% v 53.9%) or CDK4/6 inhibitors for luminal tumors with less-aggressive characteristics (55.8% v 80.0%) during the COVID-19 outbreak. A significant change was also observed in delaying the timing for monitoring therapy with CDK4/6 inhibitors, assessing treatment response with imaging tests, and flushing central venous devices. Clinical research and scientific activities were reduced in 80.3% and 80.1% of respondents previously implicated in these activities, respectively. CONCLUSION: Medical oncologists face many challenges in providing cancer care during the COVID-19 outbreak. Although most of the changes in their attitudes and practice were reasonable responses to the current health care emergency without expected major negative impact on patient outcomes, some potentially alarming signals of undertreatment were observed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. S49
Author(s):  
E. Heeg ◽  
K. Schreuder ◽  
P.E.R. Spronk ◽  
J.C. Oosterwijk ◽  
S. Siesling ◽  
...  

2002 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 1008-1016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenchi Liang ◽  
Caroline B. Burnett ◽  
Julia H. Rowland ◽  
Neal J. Meropol ◽  
Lynne Eggert ◽  
...  

PURPOSE: To identify factors associated with patient-physician communication and to examine the impact of communication on patients’ perception of having a treatment choice, actual treatment received, and satisfaction with care among older breast cancer patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected from 613 pairs of surgeons and their older (≥ 67 years) patients diagnosed with localized breast cancer. Measures of patients’ self-reported communication included physician- and patient-initiated communication and the number of treatment options discussed. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between communication and outcomes. RESULTS: Patients who reported that their surgeons mentioned more treatment options were 2.21 times (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.62 to 3.01) more likely to report being given a treatment choice, and 1.33 times (95% CI, 1.02 to 1.73) more likely to get breast-conserving surgery with radiation than other types of treatment. Surgeons who were trained in surgical oncology, or who treated a high volume of breast cancer patients (≥ 75% of practice), were more likely to initiate communication with patients (odds ratio [OR] = 1.62; 95% CI, 1.02 to 2.56; and OR = 1.68; 95% CI, 1.01 to 2.76, respectively). A high degree of physician-initiated communication, in turn, was associated with patients’ perception of having a treatment choice (OR = 2.46; 95% CI, 1.29 to 4.70), and satisfaction with breast cancer care (OR = 2.13; 95% CI, 1.17 to 3.85) in the 3 to 6 months after surgery. CONCLUSION: Greater patient-physician communication was associated with a sense of choice, actual treatment, and satisfaction with care. Technical information and caring components of communication impacted outcomes differently. Thus, the quality of cancer care for older breast cancer patients may be improved through interventions that improve communication within the physician-patient dyad.


1999 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 2614-2614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeanne S. Mandelblatt ◽  
Patricia A. Ganz ◽  
Katherine L. Kahn

ABSTRACT: Cancer is an important disease, and health care services have the potential to improve the quality and quantity of life for cancer patients. The delivery of these services also has recently been well codified. Given this framework, cancer care presents a unique opportunity for clinicians to develop and test outcome measures across diverse practice settings. Recently, the Institute of Medicine released a report reviewing the quality of cancer care in the United States and called for further development and monitoring of quality indicators. Thus, as we move into the 21st century, professional and regulatory agencies will be seeking to expand process measures and develop and validate outcomes-oriented measures for cancer and other diseases. For such measures to be clinically relevant and feasible, it is key that the oncology community take an active leadership role in this process. To set the stage for such activities, this article first reviews broad methodologic concerns involved in selecting measures of the quality of care, using breast cancer to exemplify key issues. We then use the case of breast cancer to review the different phases of cancer care and provide examples of phase-specific measures that, after careful operationalization, testing, and validation, could be used as the basis of an agenda for measuring the quality of breast cancer care in oncology practice. The diffusion of process and outcome measures into practice; the practicality, reliability, and validity of these measures; and the impact that these indicators have on practice patterns and the health of populations will be key to evaluating the success of such quality-of-care paradigms. Ultimately, improved quality of care should translate into morbidity and mortality reductions.


2012 ◽  
Vol 30 (34_suppl) ◽  
pp. 15-15
Author(s):  
Rebecca Howe ◽  
Michael J. Hassett ◽  
Alyse Wheelock ◽  
Cristina M. Thorsen ◽  
Celia Kaplan ◽  
...  

15 Background: Little is known about patients’ views regarding the costs of cancer care and its effect on treatment selection. Even less is known about how patients view information about conflicts of interest, such as disclosure of a clinic’s profit from cancer therapy. In the setting of health care reform and rising costs, we sought to understand how out-of-pocket costs and disclosure of profit impact patient treatment preferences. Methods: Previous breast cancer patients were invited to complete a web-based survey that presented four scenarios outlining cancer care treatment benefits and risks (MRI, pegfilgrastim, cold cap, and chemotherapy drugs). Initially, respondents were asked their preference for each treatment over a standard of care alternative and their out-of-pocket willingness to pay. After providing information about first, the total cost per treatment and second, the profit to the clinic, respondents were asked if their preference changed. Results: 40 women responded, all whom had previous diagnoses of breast cancer. In each of the four scenarios, respondents were less interested in the treatment option after being informed about cost or disclosure of a clinic profit. While 45.5% of respondents said they consider costs all or most of the time, only 9.1% considered clinic profit. However, 66.7% of respondents said they would be less interested in a treatment if they knew their provider received a profit from the treatment. Conclusions: Patients are less likely to prefer treatments after disclosure of total cost and clinic profit data. Communication about the costs and profits associated with cancer care may be an essential component of informed decision making in an era of growing patient involvement and escalating health care costs. [Table: see text]


2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (7_suppl) ◽  
pp. 109-109
Author(s):  
Andrea Eisen ◽  
Jasmin Soobrian ◽  
Ashley Tyrrell ◽  
Clement Li ◽  
Derek Muradali ◽  
...  

109 Background: Disease Pathway Management (DPM) is used by Cancer Care Ontario (CCO) to set priorities for cancer control, plan cancer services, and improve the quality of care in Ontario by promoting standardization. The DPM approach applies a framework to examine the performance of the entire system from prevention to end of life care, and to identify any gaps within the system. In 2014, DPM began its breast cancer pathway initiative by mapping the patient journey, depicting evidence-based best practice along the breast cancer care continuum, identifying where further guidance is needed for clinical decision making, and identifying gaps in quality of care and performance measurement indicators. Objective: To evaluate the impact of DPM on quality assessment of breast cancer care in Ontario. Methods: DPM convened a multidisciplinary breast cancer working group (WG) of 40 experts from across Ontario. The WG held 12 meetings and used guidelines developed by CCO’s Program in Evidence Based Care (or other sources as needed) to generate pathways for the prevention, screening and diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care for breast cancer. The pathways were used as a framework to review the existing inventory of provincial breast cancer quality indicators, and to identify areas where evidence based guidance is needed. The pathways were subjected to an extensive review process before publication. Results: The expert WG identified 28 priority areas, including opportunities to develop guidance in areas where it is lacking (e.g. role of perioperative breast MRI; indications for contralateral prophylactic mastectomy) and system barriers that may hinder optimal care (e.g. biomarker assessment). The WG also used the pathways as a framework for evaluating performance measurement indicators by mapping 48 existing quality indicators for breast cancer to the pathway. Conclusions: The CCO DPM Breast Cancer pathways facilitated a province-wide, multidisciplinary process to promote quality standards, to identify gaps and overlaps in performance and quality measurement, and to recommend additional indicators more relevant to the quality of breast cancer care in Ontario.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (27_suppl) ◽  
pp. 166-166
Author(s):  
Catherine R. Fedorenko ◽  
Laura Elizabeth Panattoni ◽  
Qin Sun ◽  
Li Li ◽  
Karma L. Kreizenbeck ◽  
...  

166 Background: Rural residents are diagnosed at later stages of cancer compared to urban residents, have poorer survival, and face distinct barriers to receiving quality cancer care. ASCO has developed policy initiatives to address rural cancer care; however, little is known about quality of cancer care among patients residing in rural areas. This study examined the impact of rurality on performance metrics, controlling for socioeconomic status and insurance type. Methods: We linked Washington state cancer registry records from 2015-2017 with claims records for two large commercial insurers, Medicare, and Medicaid. Using claims from this database, we generated eight nationally recognized quality measures. Rurality was measured by the Rural-Urban Commuting Area Codes (RUCAs) categorized into 4 levels (Metro, Metro with commute, Micropolitan, Small Town/Rural). Process and outcome measures were adjusted for age, sex, race, comorbidity score, stage, cancer type, marital status, the Area Deprivation Index, and treatment factors where appropriate. Results were stratified by payer type. Results: The table below lists the effect of a patient’s rurality on the quality metric where significant (p<0.05). Where rurality did not impact the performance measure, results are left blank. Conclusions: After controlling for socioeconomic status and payer type, quality of cancer care for rural cancer patients was not consistently poorer compared to urban patients. These results suggest that lower survival among rural patients may be due to factors beyond quality of care.[Table: see text]


2014 ◽  
Vol 32 (25) ◽  
pp. 2758-2764 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Y. Ko ◽  
Julie S. Darnell ◽  
Elizabeth Calhoun ◽  
Karen M. Freund ◽  
Kristin J. Wells ◽  
...  

Purpose Poor and underserved women face barriers in receiving timely and appropriate breast cancer care. Patient navigators help individuals overcome these barriers, but little is known about whether patient navigation improves quality of care. The purpose of this study is to examine whether navigated women with breast cancer are more likely to receive recommended standard breast cancer care. Patients and Methods Women with breast cancer who participated in the national Patient Navigation Research Program were examined to determine whether the care they received included the following: initiation of antiestrogen therapy in patients with hormone receptor–positive breast cancer; initiation of postlumpectomy radiation therapy; and initiation of chemotherapy in women younger than age 70 years with triple-negative tumors more than 1 cm. This is a secondary analysis of a multicenter quasi-experimental study funded by the National Cancer Institute to evaluate patient navigation. Multiple logistic regression was performed to compare differences in receipt of care between navigated and non-navigated participants. Results Among participants eligible for antiestrogen therapy, navigated participants (n = 380) had a statistically significant higher likelihood of receiving antiestrogen therapy compared with non-navigated controls (n = 381; odds ratio [OR], 1.73; P = .004) in a multivariable analysis. Among the participants eligible for radiation therapy after lumpectomy, navigated participants (n = 255) were no more likely to receive radiation (OR, 1.42; P = .22) than control participants (n = 297). Conclusion We demonstrate that navigated participants were more likely than non-navigated participants to receive antiestrogen therapy. Future studies are required to determine the full impact patient navigation may have on ensuring that vulnerable populations receive quality care.


Author(s):  
Chiara Jongerius ◽  
Selena Russo ◽  
Ketti Mazzocco ◽  
Gabriella Pravettoni

BACKGROUND The use of mobile health (mHealth) apps in clinical settings is increasing widely. mHealth has been used to promote prevention, improve early detection, manage care, and support survivors and chronic patients. However, data on the efficacy and utility of mHealth apps are limited. OBJECTIVE The main objective of this review was to provide an overview of the available research-tested interventions using mHealth apps and their impact on breast cancer care. METHODS A systematic search of Medline, PsycINFO, Embase, and Scopus was performed to identify relevant studies. From the selected studies, the following information was extracted: authors, publication date, study objectives, study population, study design, interventions’ features, outcome measures, and results. RESULTS We identified 29 empirical studies that described a health care intervention using an mHealth app in breast cancer care. Of these, 7 studies were about the use of an mHealth application in an intervention for breast cancer prevention and early detection, 12 targeted care management, and 10 focused on breast cancer survivors. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate consistent and promising findings of interventions using mHealth apps that target care management in breast cancer. Among the categories of mHealth apps focusing on survivorship, mHealth-based interventions showed a positive effect by promoting weight loss, improving the quality of life, and decreasing stress. There is conflicting and less conclusive data on the effect of mHealth apps on psychological dimensions. We advocate further investigation to confirm and strengthen these findings. No consistent evidence for the impact of interventions using mHealth apps in breast cancer prevention and early detection was identified due to the limited number of studies identified by our search. Future research should continue to explore the impact of mHealth apps on breast cancer care to build on these initial recommendations.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document