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Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa

Received: 10 May 2022     Accepted: 6 June 2022     Published: 10 August 2022
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Abstract

Cameroon Oncology Center (COC) is a modern oncology center that was commissioned for clinical use in 2019. COC is located just outside the city of Douala in the Republic of Cameroon in the central African sub-region in Sub-Saharan Africa. With the scarcity of qualified cancer treatment health professionals, COC has had to develop and deplore a hybrid telemedicine program for her oncology services. This paper describes the tele-oncology workflow with particular emphasis on radiotherapy. The oncology telemedicine model consists of a team of US-based experts supported by an onsite team in Cameroon. The team in Cameroon provides face-to-face consultations and clinical evaluation of patients, review of pertinent medical history and pathology, provides initial dose prescription based on accepted protocols, performs computed tomography simulation, radiation treatment delivery, quality control of radiation equipment and patient treatment, evaluations and monitoring during and post treatment consultations. The US-based team oversees treatment planning including contouring of the cancer and delineation of critical structures, computation and review of patient treatment plan, and transfer of approved plan to Cameroon for treatment delivery. With the presented telemedicine model, COC is able to provide high-quality radiation treatments to cancer patients in central Africa that is comparable to any international standard at a fraction of the cost for patients. With increased access to well-trained and experienced professionals, telemedicine is an effective tool to offer quality assured and safe radiotherapy to cancer patients in a resource-limited oncology setting.

Published in International Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research (Volume 7, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14
Page(s) 70-75
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Cancer, Cameroon Oncology Center, Telemedicine, Radiation Treatment Planning

References
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Paul Mobit, Waleed Mourad, Edmund Folefac, Weisi Yan, Nicholas Ade, et al. (2022). Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa. International Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research, 7(3), 70-75. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14

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    ACS Style

    Paul Mobit; Waleed Mourad; Edmund Folefac; Weisi Yan; Nicholas Ade, et al. Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa. Int. J. Clin. Oncol. Cancer Res. 2022, 7(3), 70-75. doi: 10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14

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    AMA Style

    Paul Mobit, Waleed Mourad, Edmund Folefac, Weisi Yan, Nicholas Ade, et al. Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa. Int J Clin Oncol Cancer Res. 2022;7(3):70-75. doi: 10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14,
      author = {Paul Mobit and Waleed Mourad and Edmund Folefac and Weisi Yan and Nicholas Ade and Paulin Harmoniel Imandi and Mouelle Sone and Rachael Tayou and Isabella Fri Tayong},
      title = {Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa},
      journal = {International Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research},
      volume = {7},
      number = {3},
      pages = {70-75},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijcocr.20220703.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijcocr.20220703.14},
      abstract = {Cameroon Oncology Center (COC) is a modern oncology center that was commissioned for clinical use in 2019. COC is located just outside the city of Douala in the Republic of Cameroon in the central African sub-region in Sub-Saharan Africa. With the scarcity of qualified cancer treatment health professionals, COC has had to develop and deplore a hybrid telemedicine program for her oncology services. This paper describes the tele-oncology workflow with particular emphasis on radiotherapy. The oncology telemedicine model consists of a team of US-based experts supported by an onsite team in Cameroon. The team in Cameroon provides face-to-face consultations and clinical evaluation of patients, review of pertinent medical history and pathology, provides initial dose prescription based on accepted protocols, performs computed tomography simulation, radiation treatment delivery, quality control of radiation equipment and patient treatment, evaluations and monitoring during and post treatment consultations. The US-based team oversees treatment planning including contouring of the cancer and delineation of critical structures, computation and review of patient treatment plan, and transfer of approved plan to Cameroon for treatment delivery. With the presented telemedicine model, COC is able to provide high-quality radiation treatments to cancer patients in central Africa that is comparable to any international standard at a fraction of the cost for patients. With increased access to well-trained and experienced professionals, telemedicine is an effective tool to offer quality assured and safe radiotherapy to cancer patients in a resource-limited oncology setting.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

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    T1  - Introduction of a Hybrid Tele-oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting in Sub-Saharan Africa
    AU  - Paul Mobit
    AU  - Waleed Mourad
    AU  - Edmund Folefac
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    JF  - International Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research
    JO  - International Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research
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    PB  - Science Publishing Group
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    AB  - Cameroon Oncology Center (COC) is a modern oncology center that was commissioned for clinical use in 2019. COC is located just outside the city of Douala in the Republic of Cameroon in the central African sub-region in Sub-Saharan Africa. With the scarcity of qualified cancer treatment health professionals, COC has had to develop and deplore a hybrid telemedicine program for her oncology services. This paper describes the tele-oncology workflow with particular emphasis on radiotherapy. The oncology telemedicine model consists of a team of US-based experts supported by an onsite team in Cameroon. The team in Cameroon provides face-to-face consultations and clinical evaluation of patients, review of pertinent medical history and pathology, provides initial dose prescription based on accepted protocols, performs computed tomography simulation, radiation treatment delivery, quality control of radiation equipment and patient treatment, evaluations and monitoring during and post treatment consultations. The US-based team oversees treatment planning including contouring of the cancer and delineation of critical structures, computation and review of patient treatment plan, and transfer of approved plan to Cameroon for treatment delivery. With the presented telemedicine model, COC is able to provide high-quality radiation treatments to cancer patients in central Africa that is comparable to any international standard at a fraction of the cost for patients. With increased access to well-trained and experienced professionals, telemedicine is an effective tool to offer quality assured and safe radiotherapy to cancer patients in a resource-limited oncology setting.
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Author Information
  • Department of Radiation Oncology, Cameroon Oncology Center, Douala, Cameroon

  • Department Radiation Medicine, University of Kentucky Medical Center, Lexington, USA

  • Department of Medical Oncology, The James Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, USA

  • Department Radiation Oncology, Baptist Health Cancer Center, Corbin, USA

  • Department of Radiation Oncology, Cameroon Oncology Center, Douala, Cameroon

  • Department of Radiation Oncology, Cameroon Oncology Center, Douala, Cameroon

  • Department of Radiation Oncology, Cameroon Oncology Center, Douala, Cameroon

  • Department of Radiation Oncology, Cameroon Oncology Center, Douala, Cameroon

  • Cameroon Cancer Foundation, Douala, Cameroon

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