Second Opinion Referrals of Cancer Patients in Japan—A Nationwide Study

IF 4.5 2区医学 Q1 ONCOLOGY

Cancer Science Pub Date : 2025-02-11 DOI:10.1111/cas.70012

Mieko Takasawa, Norihiro Teramoto, Natsumi Yamashita, Takahiro Higashi

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Seeking a second opinion (SO) is a patient's right that is essential to appropriate decision-making for their care and treatment. In Japan, however, no previous studies have provided objective data on the nationwide practice of SO among cancer patients. In this study, we investigated SO referrals, including delays in initiating care, using data from nationwide hospital-based cancer registries and 2018–2020 the Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) survey. Among the more than 2.6 million patients diagnosed with cancer, 1.6% received SO referral letters as reimbursement. The referral rates varied based on sex, age, and geographic regions. A total of 52.1% of SO were sought before active treatment of the tumor. Approximately 60% of the patients who sought SO prior to the initial treatment returned to their original provider for treatment. The average period from diagnosis to the start of treatment among those who sought SO was 18 days and 22 days longer for non-small lung cancer and breast cancer, respectively, than among those who did not seek SO. In the future, the risk–benefit of SO referral should be examined, considering both the prognostic impact of treatment delay due to SO and the psychological benefits for the patient gained from SO.

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查看原文本刊更多论文

日本癌症患者的第二意见转诊——一项全国性研究。

寻求第二意见（SO）是患者的权利，对他们的护理和治疗做出适当的决策至关重要。然而，在日本，此前没有研究提供全国范围内癌症患者SO实践的客观数据。在本研究中，我们使用来自全国医院癌症登记处和2018-2020年诊断程序组合（DPC）调查的数据调查了SO转诊，包括启动治疗的延迟。在260多万被诊断为癌症的患者中，1.6%的人收到了SO转诊信作为报销。转诊率因性别、年龄和地理区域而异。在积极治疗肿瘤之前，总共有52.1%的SO被寻求。在初次治疗前寻求SO的患者中，约有60%回到原来的提供者处接受治疗。非小肺癌和乳腺癌患者从确诊到开始治疗的平均时间分别比不寻求SO的患者长18天和22天。在未来，应该检查SO转诊的风险-收益，同时考虑由于SO导致的治疗延迟的预后影响和患者从SO中获得的心理利益。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Cancer Science 医学-肿瘤学

自引率

3.50%

发文量

406

审稿时长

2 months

期刊介绍： Cancer Science (formerly Japanese Journal of Cancer Research) is a monthly publication of the Japanese Cancer Association. First published in 1907, the Journal continues to publish original articles, editorials, and letters to the editor, describing original research in the fields of basic, translational and clinical cancer research. The Journal also accepts reports and case reports. Cancer Science aims to present highly significant and timely findings that have a significant clinical impact on oncologists or that may alter the disease concept of a tumor. The Journal will not publish case reports that describe a rare tumor or condition without new findings to be added to previous reports; combination of different tumors without new suggestive findings for oncological research; remarkable effect of already known treatments without suggestive data to explain the exceptional result. Review articles may also be published.