Economics of multidisciplinary teams in oncology: a scoping review protocol

Objective: The objective of this scoping review is to summarize the current literature on resource use, costs and economic evaluations of multidisciplinary teams in the field of oncology. Introduction: Multidisciplinary teams are commonly considered best practice and are in widespread use in the field of oncology. However, multidisciplinary teams are expensive to provide, requiring significant clinician time and health care resources. Their effectiveness varies according to the type of cancer and stage of disease, and their cost-effectiveness has not been clearly established. Inclusion criteria: Papers reporting on the costs of using multidisciplinary teams for the treatment of patients with cancer (at any age, level of care and in any country) will be included in the review. Costs may include the costs or resources used to provide the multidisciplinary teams (e.g. teleconference equipment, travel-time and clinician-time) or subsequent medical or non-medical costs of care. Methods: Databases, including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and the NHS Economic Evaluation Database (NHS EED), will be searched from inception. Citations and references of included studies will also be searched. Two reviewers will undertake title and abstract screening, followed by full text screening. Data extraction will be conducted using a customized form. Included studies will be summarized using narrative synthesis structured around intervention characteristics and the type of economic data presented. Additional narrative synthesis will be considered for specific subgroups (depending on numbers and variation).