[Multidisciplinary Tumor Boards: Facts and Satisfaction Analysis of an Indispensable Comprehensive Cancer Center...

Background The established standard to ensure State-of-the-art cancer treatment - as a prerequisite in the national cancer plan and for comprehensive cancer centers (CCCs) today - is through interdisciplinary tumor boards (TBs). Methods This analysis assessed a newly founded CCC-TB for multiple myeloma (MM) patients, namely a) questions solved therein, b) level of compliance and c) evidence, d) frequency of clinical trial (CT) inclusion, d) progression free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) and e) satisfaction of TB-participants, referring physicians and MM patients. Results With initiation of the MM-TB, patients discussed therein substantially increased. TB-questions mostly involved symptomatic patients and recommendations on best treatment. The level of compliance and evidence were 94 % and 96.5 %, respectively; all noncompliance being coherently justified. CT inclusion was improved through the TB, leading to 18.8 % of patients being treated therein. Median PFS and OS were 2.9 and 4.7 years, respectively; also those of substantially pretreated, relapsed/refractory patients were favorable. The satisfaction of 58 participants, 33 referring physicians and 100 MM patients with the MM-TB was rewarding. Conclusion The detailed assessment of this CCC-TB on TB-questions, compliance and evidence levels, survival and satisfaction responses could serve as a valuable example for other TBs and CCCs and excite subsequent analyses on TBs.