In this issue...
- Shared care: new approaches to follow-up care after early breast cancer
- Informing best practice for breast and ovarian cancer patients
- Support for women in the transition to palliative care
- Encourage your breast diagnostic service to complete the new online assessment
- Recent Research: service now available for health professionals
- In the News: Melbourne trial investigates breast regrowth following mastectomy
- Thank you for attending NBOCC’s Pink Ribbon Events
- Staff update
Shared care: new approaches to follow-up care after early breast cancer
Expressions of Interest sought
National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre (NBOCC) is currently undertaking the Shared care demonstration project to trial and evaluate approaches to the delivery of shared care between primary and specialist clinicians for the follow-up of women who have completed treatment for early breast cancer. The project will assess the acceptability, feasibility and delivery of follow-up care according to NBOCC guidelines.
NBOCC is recognised as a pioneer in developing and promoting new models of cancer care for Australia’s unique health environment. Shared care is a model that aims to promote and support continuity of patient care, whole person care and equity of access to evidence-based care.
NBOCC is now seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI) from healthcare services around Australia with the experience and capacity to implement a locally relevant approach for the delivery of shared follow-up care of women from three months after completion of hospital-based therapy for early breast cancer.
Each demonstration site will coordinate inviting women who attend for follow-up to participate in the project. To support participating women, NBOCC will provide information about the shared care project as well as access to NBOCC follow-up care resources.
The Shared care demonstration project is expected to deliver a new model for follow-up care that improves access to follow-up care for women, including those in regional areas, and optimises of Australia’s highly specialised workforce.
Demonstration sites will be chosen by an independent selection committee and will be assessed against the criteria outlined in the EOI. Applications close 18 December 2009, 5pm EDT.
For further information about the Shared care demonstration project or a copy of the EOI, please contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(ph. 02 9357 9406).
The Shared care demonstration project is supported by a grant from the National Breast Cancer Foundation's Translational Research Funding Program.
Informing best practice for breast and ovarian cancer patients
NBOCC is committed to ensuring people diagnosed with breast and ovarian cancer in Australia receive best practice treatment and care. This includes translating the latest advances from worldwide research into evidence-based clinical practice guidelines to guide the work of Australian health professionals. NBOCC is currently updating selected topics in Clinical practice guidelines for the management of early breast cancer, Clinical practice guidelines for the management of advanced breast cancer, and Clinical practice guidelines for the management of women with epithelial ovarian cancer.
Following consultation with multidisciplinary steering committees and key stakeholders, NBOCC will develop updated recommendations on:
- the use of bisphosphonates in early and advanced breast cancer,
- the use of hypofractionated radiotherapy in early breast cancer,
- the management of women at high risk of ovarian cancer,
- the follow-up care of women with ovarian cancer, and
- the use of radical upper abdominal surgery in ovarian cancer.
The topic-specific updates ensure NBOCC can produce timely recommendations in key areas of changing evidence to help improve outcomes for breast and ovarian cancer patients in Australia.
For information about the updates to breast cancer recommendations, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (02 9357 9421). For information about updates to ovarian cancer recommendations, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (02 9357 9413).
The development of updated recommendations for breast cancer is supported by a grant from the National Breast Cancer Foundation's Translational Research Funding Program.
Support for women in the transition to palliative care
For women with breast or ovarian cancer, the transition to palliative care is often a confusing and difficult time in the treatment pathway.
NBOCC is developing a resource to support women in their conversations with family, friends and clinicians during the transition to palliative care. The project focuses on the nature of the conversations that occur and aims to provide a common language to help facilitate these discussions.
A multidisciplinary reference group, which includes breast and ovarian cancer consumers, has provided advice for the resource development. Additionally, NBOCC is conducting focus groups, with the assistance of Breast Cancer Network Australia and Breast Cancer Action Group NSW, and telephone interviews with consumers to inform the development of the content and format of the resource.
For more information about the project, please contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(02 9357 9407).
Encourage your breast diagnostic service to complete the new online assessment
NBOCC’s online tool to assist breast diagnostic services to self-assess their practices against NBOCC’s Standard of care for breast diagnostic services is now available.
Click here for more information or to complete the assessment online.
Recent Research: service now available for health professionals
Recent Research, a service for health professionals highlighting the latest breast and ovarian cancer research of interest or significance, is available on NBOCC’s website.
The service provides a link to relevant abstracts in peer-reviewed publications for busy health professionals who may not have time to review numerous articles themselves.
Abstracts are added to Recent Research on a regular basis. Health professionals can register for an email alert to be notified when a new abstract is posted to Recent Research.
Please note, NBOCC does not necessarily endorse the views or conclusions of any papers listed in Recent Research.
Click here to view the latest Recent Research and to subscribe for an email alert.
In the News: Melbourne trial investigates breast regrowth following mastectomy
On 12 November 2009, a Melbourne trial investigating the possibility of breast regrowth following mastectomy using tissue engineering gained significant media coverage.
The Melbourne-based study will investigate the hypothesis that the body can grow replacement breast tissue using the patient’s own fat cells. Researchers at the Bernard O’Brien Institute of Microsurgery have previously tested the technique in animal models. They are now progressing to the first small trial in humans involving five women.
Read more...
Thank you for attending NBOCC’s Pink Ribbon Events
Thank you to those who attended NBOCC’s flagship Pink Ribbon Events in Sydney and Melbourne this year. The events were a huge success and provided an opportunity to present the most up-to-date breast cancer statistics and to support men taking the breast cancer journey with the woman they love.
A selection of photos from the Sydney and Melbourne events can be viewed on our website. We look forward to seeing you again next year!