TITLE:
Prescription of Cancer Treatment Modalities in Developing Countries: Results from a Multi-Centre Observational Study
AUTHORS:
Rolando Camacho, Diogo Neves, Marion Piñeros, Eduardo Rosenblatt, Robert Burton, Yaima Galán, Feras Hawari, Saadettin Kilickap, Cláudia Naylor, Florian Nicula, Jesus Reno, Bhawna Sirohi, Tatiana Vidaurre, Kazem Zendehdel
KEYWORDS:
Cancer Treatment, Developing Countries, Health Services Needs and Demand, Resource Allocation, Observational Study
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Cancer Therapy,
Vol.5 No.11,
September
26,
2014
ABSTRACT: Background: Treatment is an important component
of a comprehensive cancer control approach and its outcomes strongly depend on
infrastructure, equipment, human and financial resources available. Therefore
it is imperative to generate evidence-based tools to assist health policy makers
from low resourced countries in planning efficient and equitable treatment
services for a defined population based on what it is feasible to these
settings. Methods: The
intended cancer spe-cific treatment planned and written in the patients’
medical record (treatment prescription) of untreated adult cancer cases (≥18
years of age), excluding non-melanoma skin cancer, was recorded in a
chronological way from 1 January 2012 onwards in a group of eight comprehensive
cancer centres located in middle income countries and offering the main
modalities of cancer treatment (surgery, medical oncology
and radiotherapy). Results: A total of 17,713 medical records were
reviewed, of which 7106 (54.2%) met the eligibility criteria. Prescription of
main cancer treatment modalities were distributed as follows: 57.6% for
chemotherapy (n = 4093), 56.8% for surgery (n = 4038), and 46.8% for radiotherapy
(n = 3327). There was a predominance of plans consisting of combined treatment
modalities over monotherapy (55.2% versus 44.8%). At the time of diagnosis
54.3% of the cancer cases had disease that had spread beyond the primary site,
41.2% were considered as having local disease and in 4.5% of the cases the
information on disease extension was unknown. Conclusions:
The results obtained should be seen as an approximation of cancer treatment
service demand based on what it is currently practiced and therefore feasible
in developing countries, particularly in middle income countries.