Cambio CDS to Supply Symptom Monitoring CDS (Clinical Decision Support) Service for Advanced Breast Cancer in New Zealand

We are thrilled to announce Cambio CDS just signed an agreement with the Breast Cancer Foundation New Zealand to supply CDS Service for symptom monitoring in advanced breast cancer patients.

Inability to manage ongoing symptoms and side effects is the #1 negative impact on quality of life for people with advanced breast cancer (ABC) – only a third have good control over their symptoms (BCFNZ, 2018). Studies suggest ABC patients experience an average of 14 symptoms (Twelves et al, 2014). Poor symptom management can lead to discontinuation of treatment and is potentially a factor in threshold-to-treat.

The international ABC4 consensus guidelines state that every ABC patient should be treated by a specialised multidisciplinary team, “including specialised side effects management and a nurse experienced in the treatment of ABC.” (Cardoso et al, 2018). In reality, this seldom happens: inequities and variation in care are rife, and patients who live far from a clinic or in higher deprivation situations are affected the most.

Breast Cancer Foundation NZ has commissioned the development of an integrated ePRO patient survey and clinical decision support (CDS) system for management of ABC symptoms.

Patients will be invited to complete weekly, automated, electronic symptom surveys, customised to their stage of treatment, medications and comorbidities. When their symptoms trigger a pre-specified threshold, a specialist nurse will receive a system-generated email alert, along with evidence-based recommendations from the CDS system. The nurse will call the patient to confirm symptoms, and will decide which recommendations to follow. This could include providing self-management information (generated by the CDS) to the patient, a letter to the patient’s GP, notifying the oncologist, arranging an ED visit etc. The patient then follows the existing clinical pathway for the management of those symptoms.

“CDS system can facilitate evidence-based care, reduce inequities and variation in care. We at Cambio CDS are thrilled to be able to contribute to improving breast cancer patients’ care in New Zealand across half of the earth thanks to modern informatics and Cloud technologies. It is indeed very motivating.” commented Dr Rong Chen, CEO of Cambio CDS.

“Our vision: Digitally-driven, best-practice, evidence-based symptom management for everyone with advanced breast cancer, leading to better quality of life and improved survival for patients, while reducing unscheduled care costs for hospitals. ”, commented Evangelia Henderson, CEO Breast Cancer Foundation New Zealand.