What Are the Barriers to Receiving Effective Breast Cancer Care?

There are many factors that can make it more difficult for patients with breast cancer, as well as those with other types of cancer, to receive optimal breast cancer treatment. Among them are access to care, insurance coverage, distance to clinical trials, distance to tertiary cancer centers, and a baseline understanding of their diagnosis. Rachel Greenup, MD, MPH, stated that part of the work of oncologists is to ensure that all patients can receive the best care possible when prompted about the factors that act as barriers.

Patients must have access to their diagnosis, and they must have access to people who can answer questions regarding that diagnosis. One notable nationwide improvement was that oncologists are trying to improve trial enrollment by diverse patient populations.

One solution proposed to help with patients’ understanding of their diagnoses was by expanding outreach through media and social media so that patients get accurate information. Patients with breast cancer can also be connected to other patients who have already been through, or are also going through, breast cancer. Greenup noted that speaking with other patients is one of the most powerful methods of support.

Greenup is a professor of surgery, the section chief of Breast Surgery, and the co-director of the Center for Breast Cancer at Smilow Cancer Hospital of Yale School of Medicine.

Transcript:

What demographic factors act as barriers to effective care for breast cancer?

Patient demographics that serve as barriers to receiving high-quality breast cancer care include access to care, insurance coverage, distance to a tertiary cancer center, access to clinical trials, and baseline knowledge or health understanding of their diagnosis and their options. We are working as an oncology community to make sure that no matter where someone lives or what their background is, they have access to their diagnosis, that it is understandable to them, and that they can tap into support services if questions or additional needs arise. We, in a national setting, are working on improving clinical trial enrollment across more diverse patient populations but still have a ways to go.

What are the next steps toward optimizing patient-centered care for patients with cancer?

We’re going to be working a lot on leveraging media and social media to help patients get the information they need in an accurate way. There’s a lot of promise with machine learning and AI [artificial intelligence], as well as with connecting women to other women. There’s no more powerful support than women who have been through breast cancer treatment. As organizations grow nationwide, with the benefit of being able to do so much of this virtually, patients can have a support system at their fingertips, without having to travel or be part of an urban or tertiary care setting.