Virtual Clinic Provides More Care Options for Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer 

Establishing a virtual molecular and precision medicine (vMAP) clinic improved the process of assessing patients with metastatic breast cancer (mBC) for the most appropriate targeted therapies, according to study findings recently published in JCO Oncology Practice.

A team of researchers set up a vMAP clinic as a real-time informal email-based consultation and prescreening assessment for patients with mBC who were receiving treatment from community and academic medical oncologists. The goal was to enhance the care delivery of precision medicine and clinical trial access. 

The vMAP program began in June 2020 and included 2 oncologists, a research nurse, a research coordinator, and consultation from genetics and molecular pathology. Providers were able to refer patients with mBC to vMAP via email. vMAP was able to consider the cases, identify if genomic testing or other diagnostics were needed and identify standard treatment options or suggest potential clinical trials. 

The researchers analyzed data collected from 81 referrals submitted by 22 providers over the course of the program’s first 2 years. Seventy-six patients were first-time referrals. Additionally, all 81 patients underwent prescreening for clinical trial eligibility, and 27 patients (33.3%) actually enrolled in a trial. Eleven of those 27 cases (40.7%) enrolled in a subsequent clinical trial. Of the patients who did not enroll in a trial, 33 (40.7%) started standard treatment as recommended by vMAP. 

The research team also examined postreferral provider survey responses. All (100%) of the providers who completed surveys indicated they would be likely or very likely to recommend vMAP to a colleague. The researchers identified 4 categories of responses to the question “What have you liked about vMAP?”: improved provider confidence, convenience/accessibility, patient-centered nature, and the increased number of treatment options.

The researchers concluded that the model demonstrated “high efficiency in providing real-time recommendations” for providers caring for patients with mBC who need new treatment plans. The utilization numbers may have been lower due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the team is working on plans to increase utilization of the platform. “This model can be translated to other cancer types,” the researchers wrote. 

“In conclusion, as a whole, the initiation and success of vMAP emphasizes that a virtual platform is an excellent modality for providing precision medicine-based recommendations to providers serving patients with MBC [metastatic breast cancer] academic and community-based cancer centers,” the researchers wrote. “Efficiently expanding our current precisions medicine care delivery models in a sustainable manner serves as a prerequisite for precision medicine to continue establishing itself as a new normal within breast oncology practice.”

Disclosures: Some study authors declared affiliations with biotech, pharmaceutical, and/or device companies. Please see the original reference for a full list of disclosures. 

Reference

Spring LM, Mortensen L, Abraham E, et al. Virtual molecular and precision medicine clinic to improve access to clinical trials for patients with metastatic breast cancer: an academic/community collaboration. JCO Oncol Pract. Published online November 3, 2023. doi:10.1200/OP.23.00193