Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: Real World Evidence of Care Delivery in AccessHope Data

J Pers Med. 2023 Sep 15;13(9):1377. doi: 10.3390/jpm13091377.

Abstract

Background: Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is an aggressive disease and the delivery of comprehensive care to individuals with this cancer is critical to achieve appropriate outcomes. The identification of gaps in care delivery facilitates the design of interventions to optimize care delivery and improve outcomes in this population.

Methods: AccessHope™ is a growing organization that connects oncology subspecialists with treating providers through contracts with self-insured employers. Data from 94 pancreatic adenocarcinoma cases (August 2019-December 2022) in the AccessHope dataset were used to describe gaps in care delivery.

Results: In all but 6% of cases, the subspecialist provided guideline-concordant recommendations anticipated to improve outcomes. Gaps in care were more pronounced in patients with non-metastatic pancreatic cancer. There was a significant deficiency in germline testing regardless of the stage, with only 59% of cases having completed testing. Only 20% of cases were receiving palliative care or other allied support services. There was no difference in observed care gaps between patients receiving care in the community setting vs. those receiving care in the academic setting.

Conclusions: There are significant gaps in the care delivered to patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. A concurrent subspecialist review has the opportunity to identify and address these gaps in a timely manner.

Keywords: care delivery; comprehensive care; germline testing; pancreatic cancer; subspecialist care.

Grants and funding

Supported by AccessHope™.