Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in 112 countries, accounting for 1 in 14 diagnosed cancer cases worldwide. For this reason, the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer changed significantly, becoming a multidisciplinary process. Since 2015 in Poland, measures have been taken to accelerate the diagnosis and treatment of cancers, including shortening patients’ diagnosis and treatment waiting times. Background/Objectives: The aim of this study was to characterize the current clinical pathway of patients with prostate cancer and to establish standard times for various steps of treatment, as well as to develop a visualization of the steps involved in diagnosis and treatment. Methods: The research covers 2018 to 2022 in a large oncological hospital in Poland (EU area). The source data, in the form of 10 fully anonymized CSV files generated from the hospital’s medical statistics, have been converted to the target data model. Results: The time limits for diagnosing and commencing the treatment of patients with diagnosed prostate cancer specified by legal regulations and by guidelines of scientific associations are not met in 42% of cases. The greatest delays concern the initiation of the steps of treatment (53%) and comprehensive diagnostics (37%). The diagnostic pathways should be modified to facilitate early and rapid detection of prostate cancer and to allow further therapy within the time limit strictly defined by regulations and guidelines of scientific associations.
前列腺癌在112个国家中是男性最常见的癌症,占全球确诊癌症病例的十四分之一。因此,前列腺癌的诊断和治疗发生了显著变化,成为一个多学科协作的过程。自2015年以来,波兰已采取措施加速癌症的诊断和治疗,包括缩短患者的诊断和治疗等待时间。背景/目的:本研究旨在描述当前前列腺癌患者的临床路径,确定治疗各阶段的标准时间,并开发诊断和治疗步骤的可视化方案。方法:研究覆盖2018年至2022年波兰(欧盟地区)一家大型肿瘤医院的数据。源数据为医院医疗统计生成的10个完全匿名CSV文件,已转换为目标数据模型。结果:42%的病例未能达到法律法规和科学协会指南规定的确诊前列腺癌患者诊断和开始治疗的时间限制。最大的延迟涉及治疗步骤的启动(53%)和全面诊断(37%)。应修改诊断路径,以促进前列腺癌的早期快速检测,并确保在法律法规和科学协会指南严格规定的时间限制内进行进一步治疗。