Abstract 1606P
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of health system preparedness. Radioligand therapy is a relatively new treatment that has been shown to improve progression-free survival and quality of life in several cancers. Because it uses radioactivity delivered directly into the bloodstream, radioligand therapy raises specific issues concerning models of care, hospital capacity, infrastructure and nuclear waste disposal. To better understand how health systems can fully integrate radioligand therapy into clinical cancer care, we are developing a readiness assessment framework, which aims to serve as a useful tool to help health systems assess their preparedness for the integration of this treatment modality into cancer care.
Methods
Desk research was conducted to evaluate existing assessment tools that may be of relevance to this treatment, and to facilitate the building of a replicable assessment framework that can be populated with comparable data sources.
Results
Many global assessment tools exist for radiotherapy and cancer care planning, but none are directly applicable to radioligand therapy. The domains frequently assessed by the tools include cancer control capacity, infrastructure, equipment, staffing, regulatory and legal requirements, costs and cost-effectiveness. Building on these tools, we are developing a bespoke assessment framework, drawing on a structured literature review, stakeholder interviews and guidance from a multidisciplinary steering committee. The framework will be piloted in the UK and the US.
Conclusions
Our proposed readiness assessment framework may help identify and assess the necessary processes and resources for the successful integration of radioligand therapy into cancer care, ultimately informing policy and planning discussions in a number of countries worldwide.
Clinical trial identification
Editorial acknowledgement
Legal entity responsible for the study
The Health Policy Partnership.
Funding
Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA).
Disclosure
All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.