Head and neck multidisciplinary team meetings: Effect on patient management.
BACKGROUND
The purpose of this study was for us to present our findings on the prospectively audited impact of head and neck multidisciplinary team meetings on patient management.


METHODS
We collected clinical data, the pre-multidisciplinary team meeting treatment plan, the post-multidisciplinary team meeting treatment plans, and follow-up data from all patients discussed at a weekly multidisciplinary team meeting and we recorded the changes in management.


RESULTS
One hundred seventy-two patients were discussed in 39 meetings. In 52 patients (30%), changes in management were documented of which 20 (67%) were major. Changes were statistically more likely when the referring physician was a medical or radiation oncologist, when the initial treatment plan did not include surgery, and when the histology was neither mucosal squamous cell cancer nor a skin malignancy. Compliance to the multidisciplinary team meeting treatment recommendation was 84% for all patients and 70% for patients with changes in their treatment recommendation.


CONCLUSIONS
Head and neck multidisciplinary team meetings changed management in almost a third of the cases.
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.|Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Markus
M
Brunner
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Sinclair M
SM
Gore
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Rebecca L
RL
Read
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Ashlin
A
Alexander
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Ankur
A
Mehta
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Michael
M
Elliot
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Chris
C
Milross
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Michael
M
Boyer
Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, The Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Jonathan R
JR
Clark
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001315:Australia; D019468:Disease Management; D005260:Female; D006126:Group Processes; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011446:Prospective Studies
head and neck cancer; multidisciplinary team; multidisciplinary team meetings