Improving Assessment and Care for Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neurotoxicity (CIPN)
Project description:
Chemotherapy induced nerve damage or peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a significant persisting toxicity of chemotherapy treatment and is a common reason for chemotherapy dose reduction or early cessation. Despite this impact, there are no standardised assessment strategies and significant discrepancies in clinical management across centres.
To address the lack of clinical guidance on CIPN assessment and management in Australia, our team has recently developed a clinical pathway to guide best practice in CIPN assessment and management in Australia. This pathway was developed via an expert advisory committee of medical oncologists, neurologists, nurses, researchers, allied-health professionals, and patient-consumers.
The pathway emphasises patient report of symptoms which may identify persisting disability earlier, of crucial importance to allow timely referral for interventions to improve functional capacity and reduce falls risk.
Expansion of the project will allow for implementation of the clinical pathway, enabling better uptake. This will be achieved via involvement of implementation scientists to incorporate recognised health services research tools including process mapping and co-design to ensure tailored implementation and service improvement of the pathway.
Outcomes
The project leads to improved outcomes for patients including:
Early identification of patients at-risk of chemotherapy induced nerve damage
Better identification of emerging chemotherapy-induced nerve damage
Improved patient-clinician communication regarding toxicity
Improved patient satisfaction with care
Impact on the healthcare professional
This project is beneficial for oncologists, nurses and other healthcare professionals in guiding optimal assessment and care for chemotherapy-induced nerve damage. This includes implementation of electronic patient reported outcomes and development of standardised referral pathways to supportive care.
Impact on the healthcare institution
A more systematic approach to chemotherapy toxicity assessment is beneficial for healthcare institutions to deliver optimal care and promote best practice in management.
Proposer
Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney Australia
320-346 Barker Street
Randwick NSW 2031
Project contact person:
Associate Professor Susanna Park
susanna.park@sydney.edu.au
Project team members:
Prof David Goldstein (Medical oncologist, co-sponsor)
A/Prof Susanna Park (Clinical neuroscientist)
A/Prof Peter Grimison (Medical oncologist)
Prof Frances Boyle (Medical oncologist)
Dr Tracy King (Clinical Nurse Consultant)
Phil Mendoza-Jones (Patient advocate)
Dr David Mizrahi (Exercise physiologist)
Prof Matthew Kiernan (Neurologist)
Dr Hannah Timmins (Clinical neuroscientist)
Tiffany Li (Clinical neuroscientist)
Prof Michael Friedlander (Medical oncologist)
Dr Michelle Harrison (Medical oncologist)
Dr Janan Sinan (Project Officer)