Implementation of a Multidisciplinary Inflammatory Breast Cancer Program for Quality Improvement

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Medical Diagnostics
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) is a rare, aggressive breast cancer subtype.
• IBC diagnosis is challenging, often leading to treatment delays.
• A multidisciplinary program was established to address unique IBC challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of a multidisciplinary IBC program on diagnosis and treatment timelines.
• To assess the effectiveness of a revised decision tree (DT) in identifying potential IBC patients.
• To ensure timely initiation of neoadjuvant chemotherapy and completion of trimodality therapy.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of patients with an IBC CPT code.
• Data collection on key treatment milestones: first visit, biopsy, and chemotherapy initiation.
• Implementation of a revised decision tree (DT) for prioritizing potential IBC patients within the multidisciplinary program.

Main Results:

• Significant decrease in median time from initial contact to chemotherapy initiation (43% reduction in 2020).
• Median contact-to-chemotherapy time was 10 days in 2020.
• 100% of patients completed trimodality therapy (neoadjuvant chemotherapy, mastectomy, radiation).

Conclusions:

• A multidisciplinary IBC program, including a symptom-focused decision tree, effectively identifies patients.
• The program significantly decreases time to treatment initiation.
• The program ensures completion of comprehensive trimodality therapy for IBC patients.