The multidisciplinary pancreatic cyst clinic: A collaborative approach to streamlined management

Abstract

BackgroundPancreatic cysts are often incidentally detected on routine imaging studies. Of these, mucinous cysts have a malignant potential. Several guidelines propose different management strategies, and implementation in patient care is inconsistent in the absence of dedicated infrastructure. MethodsTo address the challenges of pancreatic cyst diagnosis and management, we established a multidisciplinary pancreas cyst clinic (PCC) within our health system. This clinic encompasses both tertiary care academic centers and community hospitals, with leadership from surgical oncology, gastroenterology, and radiology. Our PCC's primary goal is to provide accurate diagnosis and tailored management recommendations for all patients with pancreatic cysts. Additionally, we maintain a prospective database to study the disease's natural history and the outcomes of various treatment strategies. Clinic infrastructureThe clinic meets once per week for 45 min virtually via Zoom in the mornings. Patients are referred via electronic medical record (EMR) order, telephone call, or email from patient or referring provider. A dedicated advanced practice provider reviews referrals several times per day, calls patients to gather clinical data, ensures imaging is uploaded, and coordinates logistical aspects of the meeting during the dedicated time. Conferences are attended by representatives from surgery, radiology, medical pancreatology, and interventional gastroenterology. Each patient case is reviewed in detail and recommendations are submitted to referring providers and patients via an EMR message and letter. For patients requiring imaging surveillance, patients are followed longitudinally by the referring provider, gastroenterology team, or surgical team. For patients requiring endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) or surgical consultation, expedited referral to these services is made with prompt subsequent evaluation. ResultsA total of 1052 patients from our health system were evaluated between 2020 and 2021. Of these, 196 (18.6 %) underwent EUS, 41 (3.9 %) underwent upfront surgical resection, and the remainder were referred to gastroenterology (141–13.4 %), surgery (314–29.8 %), or back to their referring provider (597–56.7 %) for ongoing surveillance in collaboration with their primary care provider (PCP). Of cysts under surveillance, 61.3 % remained stable, 13.2 % increased in size, and 2 % decreased in size. A total of 2.3 % of patients were recommended to discontinue surveillance. ConclusionsThe PCC provides infrastructure that has served to provide multidisciplinary review and consensus recommendations to patients with pancreatic cysts. This has served to improve the application of guidelines while providing individualized recommendations to each patient, while aiding non-expert referring providers throughout the region.