title: Teleradiotherapy Network: Applications and Feasibility for Providing Cost-Effective Comprehensive Radiotherapy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Group Countries for Cancer Patients.
abstract: Globally, new cancer cases will rise by 57% within the next two decades, with the majority in the low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Consequently, a steep increase of about 40% in cancer deaths is expected there, mainly because of lack of treatment facilities, especially radiotherapy. Radiotherapy is required for more than 50% of patients, but the capital cost for equipment often deters establishment of such facilities in LMICs. Presently, of the 139 LMICs, 55 do not even have a radiotherapy facility, whereas the remaining 84 have a deficit of 61.4% of their required radiotherapy units. Networking between centers could enhance the effectiveness and reach of existing radiotherapy in LMICs. A teleradiotherapy network could enable centers to share and optimally utilize their resources, both infrastructure and staffing. This could be in the form of a three-tier radiotherapy service consisting of primary, secondary, and tertiary radiotherapy centers interlinked through a network. The concept has been adopted in some LMICs and could also be used as a "service provider model," thereby reducing the investments to set up such a network. Teleradiotherapy networks could be a part of the multipronged approach to address the enormous gap in radiotherapy services in a cost-effective manner and to support better accessibility to radiotherapy facilities, especially for LMICs.
authors.affiliation: 1 Centre for Radiation Oncology, KSA-KSB, Kantonsspital Aarau , Aarau, Switzerland .
authors.forename: Niloy Ranjan
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Datta
authors.affiliation: 1 Centre for Radiation Oncology, KSA-KSB, Kantonsspital Aarau , Aarau, Switzerland .
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heuser
authors.affiliation: 2 Formerly, PACT Section, International Atomic Energy Agency , Vienna, Austria .
authors.forename: Massoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Samiei
authors.affiliation: 3 Online Telemedicine Research Institute , Ahmedabad, India .
authors.forename: Ragesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.affiliation: 1 Centre for Radiation Oncology, KSA-KSB, Kantonsspital Aarau , Aarau, Switzerland .
authors.forename: Gerd
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lutters
authors.affiliation: 1 Centre for Radiation Oncology, KSA-KSB, Kantonsspital Aarau , Aarau, Switzerland .|4 Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Zurich , Zurich, Switzerland .
authors.forename: Stephan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bodis
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D003906:Developing Countries; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D017216:Telemedicine
keywords: e-health; education; telehealth; telemedicine; teleoncology