Effectiveness of the navigation of cancer chemoradiotherapy patients: a retrospective cohort study

To verify the effectiveness of a navigation program for cancer patients undergoing concomitant chemoradiotherapy treatment in a public hospital, regarding treatment completion, emergency service visits and unplanned hospitalizations.

Retrospective double cohort study conducted in a hospital in southern Brazil. Adults with cancer referred for concomitant chemoradiation were included from January 2022 to December 2023. Participants were divided into before and after navigation program groups. Univariate analysis and Poisson regression were performed to assess outcomes.

A total of 100 patients were evaluated in the before navigation group and 112 in the after navigation group. After the implementation of the program, there was a higher percentage of patients who achieved complete treatment (66% versus 89.3%; p<0.001), a lower percentage of emergency room visits (50% versus 31.3%; p=0.008) and hospital admissions (57% versus 33; p=0.001). In the multivariate analysis adjusted for exposure variables, no significant effect was observed for the primary outcome (p>0.05).

Improvements in treatment success and a decrease in the use of emergency services and hospitalizations were observed, although more robust evidence is needed to prove the full effectiveness of the navigation program, no significant associations were identified in the multivariate analysis that proves the effectiveness of the navigation program.