Ateam of oncology clinicians in New York has now started what they call “The Undiagnosed Cancer Clinic.” The clinic was launched more than 1 year ago, and it has become an important new resource for primary care providers and their patients in cases where cancer is suspected but a clear diagnosis is not indicated by symptom presentation and/or diagnostic tests.
In many respects, the clinic is something that is long overdue and may start a new trend in oncology. The Undiagnosed Cancer Clinic has been set up by a team of oncology experts at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, New York, to help improve the efficiency of diagnosis and care of cancer for people living in and around western New York. However, because of its success, other clinics like this may sprout up around the United States.
“It’s about efficiency and decreased wait times for these patients and their families, and the ability to drill down to what the issue is,” said Martin Mahoney, MD, PhD, who helps run the clinic.
In many of the patients presenting at this clinic, cancer is suspected or an abnormality has been found on a radiogram or computed tomography scan that is consistent with cancer, but further testing and a biopsy is needed to confirm what type of cancer it is. The clinic’s multidisciplinary team of specialists can obtain a biopsy using the most appropriate method, make a diagnosis, and refer the patient for care with one of the disease-site experts at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Mahoney pointed out often valuable time can be lost as care providers try to determine what to do next, and which type of biopsy may be the least invasive and yield rapid results. In some cases, he said, patients can be referred from specialist to specialist in the effort to make a definitive diagnosis. The Undiagnosed Cancer Clinic is designed to combat that problem and get these patients diagnosed and started on a treatment plan as quickly as possible