New Collaborative Project to Improve Cancer Care in Upper Franconia

Cancer patients in rural regions often face major barriers to receiving optimal care, such as long distances to specialized services, insufficient digital infrastructure, and poor coordination between general practitioners, specialists, and certified cancer centers. Yet treatment in certified cancer centers is demonstrably associated with better outcomes. This is where the new collaborative project comes in. Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Christian Graeb (Head of the Oncology Center at Klinikum Hof), Prof. Dr. Martin Emmert (Institute of Medical Management and Health Sciences at the University of Bayreuth), and Prof. Dr. Alexander Kiani (Head of the Oncology Center at Klinikum Bayreuth), the project aims to structurally and digitally improve cancer care in Upper Franconia. 

In the first phase, the project will focus on optimizing cross-sectoral care structures by developing a comprehensive regional care and treatment network for cancer patients. This network will include clearly identifiable contact points within the region and enable patients and healthcare professionals to access certified cancer centers more easily. Effective communication channels will be implemented to ensure the secure and seamless transmission of patient data.

Another key goal is to expand access to innovative diagnostic and therapeutic options. To this end, structured processes will be developed to provide all patients with detailed information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment opportunities available in the region. At the same time, a regional clinical trial network will be established and continuously expanded to facilitate participation in clinical research and improve access to state-of-the-art therapies.

A third focus of the project is to strengthen patient autonomy and empowerment. To support this, user-friendly web-based information platforms will be created for patients. In addition, patients will be able to self-report so-called Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs), helping them to better understand their needs and make informed decisions about accessing services from a specialized care network.

To achieve these objectives, a central coordination unit will first be established at the Tumor Center Upper Franconia (Tumorzentrum Oberfranken e.V.). This unit will support the development of efficient communication pathways and the targeted promotion of patient autonomy throughout the course of the project.