A group of clinicians and consumers from across the breast cancer spectrum have come together to form a working group to improve breast cancer care throughout New Zealand.
BCAC chair Libby Burgess is one of two breast cancer survivors on the newly formed National Breast Cancer Working Group.
The group has been formed at the behest of the Ministry of Health and will be one of eight national “tumour stream” working groups charged with developing best practice standards for cancer care.
Libby is excited about the new working group and believes it can make a real difference.
“This is a real opportunity to improve outcomes for patients and to ensure that women get the best standard of breast cancer care no matter where they live or what their circumstances.
“At BCAC we’re aware that women in different parts of the country get levels of service and treatment when they are diagnosed with breast cancer.
“This working group will develop standards that all District Health Boards can use a benchmark for breast cancer care so both clinicians and women know what sort of treatment and care is expected.”
Libby says she hopes the standards developed by the working group will help to lower the impact of breast cancer and improve survival rates.
She says clinicians from across the breast cancer spectrum are involved – from screening and pathology to surgery and oncology[EPJB1] .
“Having this broad base of knowledge should help us to develop standards which promote an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach to breast cancer care,” says Libby.
The new working group will also be able to draw on the guidelines produced for the Management of Early Breast Cancer in 2009.
The National Breast Cancer Working Group follows the formation of the National Lung Cancer Working group, which has already developed its standards for lung cancer care.
