Abstract
BackgroundThe high impact of a cancer diagnosis on patients and their families and the increasing costs of cancer treatment call for optimal and efficient oncological care. To improve the quality of care and to minimize healthcare costs and its economic burden, many healthcare organizations introduce care pathways to improve efficiency across the continuum of cancer care. However, there is limited research on the effects of cancer care pathways in different settings.MethodsThe aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis described in this protocol is to synthesize existing literature on the effects of oncological care pathways. We will conduct a systematic search strategy to identify all relevant literature in several biomedical databases, including Cochrane library, MEDLINE, Embase, and CINAHL. We will follow the methodology of Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC), and we will include randomized trials, non-randomized trials, controlled before-after studies, and interrupted time series studies. In addition, we will include full economic evaluations (cost-effectiveness analyses, cost-utility analyses, and cost-benefit analyses), cost analyses, and comparative resource utilization studies, if available. Two reviewers will independently screen all studies and evaluate those included for risk of bias. From these studies, we will extract data regarding patient, professional, and health systems outcomes. Our systematic review will follow the PRISMA set of items for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analyses.DiscussionFollowing the protocol outlined in this article, we aim to identify, assess, and synthesize all available evidence in order to provide an evidence base on the effects of oncological care pathways as reported in the literature.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42017057592.
Highlights
The high impact of a cancer diagnosis on patients and their families and the increasing costs of cancer treatment call for optimal and efficient oncological care
Advances in medical technology have contributed to the growth of an aging population with a greater life expectancy but will at the same time lead to an ever-increasing cancer burden over the decades, in low- and middle-income countries, where over 20 million new cancer cases are expected annually by 2025 [3]
The primary question is: What are the effects of oncological care pathways on patient, professional, and health system outcomes within primary and secondary care settings?
Summary
The high impact of a cancer diagnosis on patients and their families and the increasing costs of cancer treatment call for optimal and efficient oncological care. One of its defining features is the rapid growth of abnormal cells beyond their usual boundaries that can invade adjoining parts of the body and/or spread to other organs; this process is referred to as metastasis formation and is the major cause of death from cancer [1]. Data from 2012 showed 14 million new cases and 8.8 million cancer-related deaths worldwide [2]. Advances in medical technology have contributed to the growth of an aging population with a greater life expectancy but will at the same time lead to an ever-increasing cancer burden over the decades, in low- and middle-income countries, where over 20 million new cancer cases are expected annually by 2025 [3]
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