Cancer case multidisciplinary conferences give patients attention of many experts
April 24, 2024
This paid piece is sponsored by Avera.
Avera cancer experts gather almost every day of the week to bring the combined expertise of the Avera Cancer Institute – spanning six regional centers and 72,000 square miles – to bear on a patient’s case.
Surgeons, oncologists and other experts focus their decades of education, experience and board certification on one case at a time at these regular case conferences. Medical and radiation oncologists, and peer experts in pathology, radiology, tumor genetics, clinical trials, pharmacological treatments and other disciplines combine their strengths to identify the best treatment plan for every patient. It matters not if their patient is in Sioux Falls or another part of Avera’s footprint.
Each case conference is different, yet in the end, the team uses their expertise and factual data to make collaborative efforts that offer all Avera patients the advantage of personalized care.
They develop a comprehensive review of each person’s case, based on images and scans, pathology and biopsy test results, genetic and/or genomic data, patient history and more.
“Case conferences help us individualize the care for each person,” said Katie Van Beek, vice president of oncology with Avera Cancer Institute. Cancer care evolves daily, and that’s why these conferences are vital.
“Each part of the team brings specialized information to the case, which allows us to evaluate what each person most needs,” Van Beek said.
Weekly meetings allow the Avera team to share and discuss insights and ideas, for example, new clinical trials that are available.
“Having the voices of so many passionate experts, gathered together to focus on the best approach, makes big differences,” said Dr. Luis Rojas, Avera gynecologic oncologist and clinical vice president of the oncology service line. “When more opinions are shared, research has proven that patients get better results.”
Avera case conferences include providers treating a wide range of cancers, including:
- Blood
- Brain
- Breast
- Colorectal
- Gynecologic
- Head and neck
- Lung
- Prostate
The meetings often include genomic sequencing data, which can help specialists find targeted approaches to fight a tumor or lesion.
For patients receiving radiation therapy, an additional, separate review of treatment plans occurs, further personalizing their care.
“We have radiation oncologists who are not directly involved in the patient’s care who review the plans of their colleagues,” said Sarah Peterson, assistant vice president of radiation oncology, Avera Cancer Institute. “These radiation oncology-specific case conferences include experts from every Avera Cancer Institute location, as well as medical physicists, medical dosimetrists, radiation therapists and nursing staff.”
Conferences give everyone opportunities to share opinions and expertise. “That ensures every patient receives the best – and safest – care possible,” Peterson said.
Case conferences started more than a decade ago with a focus on breast cancer, said Jamie Arens, assistant vice president for Avera Outpatient Cancer Services. Over several years, the types of meetings and those who join them have expanded to allow for a deeper caregiver dialogue.
Interdisciplinary teams across many locations make sure no patient case is overlooked or not reviewed completely.
“We can have a complex cancer, for example, in the colon,” Rojas said. “Our providers in Sioux Falls may have seen the same cancer many times, so they can share their experiences with regional partners who have not.”
Rojas said that when multiple physicians gather either in person or virtually, the primary physician has final say. “Yet discussion of recommendations is worthwhile,” he said. “We can look at the results of certain approaches and consider the qualifications of other patients.”
The team approach allows patients receiving cancer care at Avera to receive the most customized, precise and specialized treatment available, Van Beek said.
“Studies are published almost every day, and that information can help our physicians and their patients,” Rojas said. “We can personalize their journey and give them every possible piece of information that can make a difference.”
