Multidisciplinary clinical approach to the management of head and neck cancer

Excerpt

Within the practice of cancer care over the past two decades, there has been a continual and rapidly expanding range of potentially efficacious treatment options, which introduce therapeutic dilemmas about optimum management plans and how these should be presented to patients [1]. This increased specialisation and complexity of knowledge has led to the introduction of multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) for the management of patients with cancer [2]. In the past, treatment for all but a few patients with cancer was based on decisions that were made unilaterally, without necessarily following an evidence-based approach [3]. One of the aims of cancer management by a multidisciplinary team hopes to ensure that all patients will benefit from the wisdom of a variety of specialist team members who can share their expertise, professional perspective, and knowledge [1, 3, 4] and has become the model of care in many countries [5]. The introduction of MDTs in England was given impetus by the production of tumour-specific guidance (Improved Outcomes Guidance; IOG), which aimed to standardise and improve the outcomes of cancer care [6]. The benefits of MDT working are thought to include improved communication, coordination, and decision-making between health care team members when weighing up treatment options. Indeed, multidisciplinary discussion can help health care professionals to tailor holistic treatment plans to patients’ tumour types, biological markers as well as their comorbidities and social circumstances [7]. Evidence has been provided that multidisciplinary team-working can make a positive impact on the quality of clinical decision-making, clinical outcomes for patients, patients’ experience of care and also the impact on the working lives of team members [8]. …