Cancer care programmes: the Swedish experience

The present organization of oncological care in Sweden is described. In each health care region, there is an oncological centre with specific functions, including responsibility for running a regional tumour registry and for developing cancer care programmes for different types of tumours. The regional tumour registry is population-based, operates in close contact with the national central cancer registry and has, in addition to cancer registration, the key function of coordinating and evaluating cancer care programmes. Cancer care programmes are defined as agreed means of managing patients with a specific disease which are effective throughout a region and at all levels within a health care system. They represent the right of all patients with cancer within a health care region to equal, standardized care, regardless of their domicile. Such standardized management also forms an excellent basis for performing clinical trials within different cancer care programmes. Current cancer care programmes in Sweden are listed, together with some examples of patient accrual in trials within regional and national programmes.