Concepts of GTDs: an oncology workstation

In Germany, computer systems have been used in hospital cancer registries for more than 10 years. Primarily, they have been used for retrospective documentation of malignant tumors, and these resources have rarely been tapped for the support of follow up care and statistical evaluation. In response to the increasing availability of PC-systems and growing interest in computer networks, we have decided to design and develop a new oncology information system which covers two important aspects of oncology care: (1) the documentation of all relevant data items for the cancer registries, and (2) the routine support of the physician in the clinical treatment process. In this paper we discuss the design and concept of this oncology information system as well as experiences gained during the development process are discussed. Future plans to further extend the system to a comprehensive oncology workstation are presented.