Lung cancer surgery specialist centres NSW
Criteria for a specialist lung cancer centres
A lung resection is surgery to remove of all or part of the lung. It is complex surgery, which requires a team of health care professionals with suitable experience performing this surgery and providing supportive care after surgery.[1-2]
International studies indicate that patient outcomes can be improved when lung cancer surgery is performed in centres that do a high number of these procedures.[3-5]
It is recommended that specialist lung cancer centres meet the following criteria perform 18 lung resections per year*
* This minimum suggested annual surgical caseload has been selected based on the hospital-level distribution of lung cancer resections in NSW.
Multidisciplinary cancer care team
Patients with lung cancer may have one or more types of treatment, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and targeted therapies.
The involvement of a multidisciplinary cancer care team is required.[1]This team brings together health care professionals from different specialties to discuss a patient’s cancer diagnosis and staging, and their treatment options. It also enhances communication and care co-ordination between the specialists involved in a patient’s care.[6]
Australian and international studies show that patients overseen by a multidisciplinary cancer care team experience better outcomes after cancer treatment.[6-8]
Actions for Health Professionals
Patient referral
Patients with a suspected or confirmed lung cancer should be referred to a specialist who is a member of a multidisciplinary cancer care team and practices at one of the specialist centres listed below.
Even if surgery does not seem likely at the time of referral, involvement of an appropriate a multidisciplinary team (MDT) early in the cancer journey is recommended to ensure optimal assessment, care, and outcomes.
The Canrefer website allows you to find cancer specialists who are MDT members, and has information about cancer services, optimal care pathways, and patient resources.
Smoking cessation support
Evidence suggests that tobacco cessation following cancer diagnosis improves survival. It also reduces treatment-related complications.[9-10] Health professionals should discuss tobacco use with all patients and provide appropriate cessation support.
List of public specialist centres for lung cancer surgery
| Local health district | Hospital | Annual average lung resection caseload Jan 2020 - Dec 2021 | Multidisciplinary cancer care team |
|---|---|---|---|
Sydney | Royal Prince Alfred | 71 – 100 | Royal Prince Alfred and Lifehouse Thoracic Cancer MDT |
South Western Sydney | Liverpool | 71 – 100 | Liverpool-Macarthur Cancer Therapy Centre Lung Cancer MDT |
| Nepean Blue Mountains | Nepean | 51-70 | Nepean Cancer Care Centre Lung Cancer MDT |
| Hunter New England | John Hunter | 31 – 50 | Hunter New England Lung Cancer MDT |
Northern Sydney | Royal North Shore | 31 – 50 | Royal North Shore Hospital Lung Cancer MDT |
| Northern NSW | The Tweed | 18-30 | Tweed Cancer Care Lung Cancer MDT |
List of private specialist centres for lung cancer surgery
| Local health district | Hospital | Annual average lung resection caseload Jul 2019 - Jun 2021 | Multidisciplinary cancer care team |
|---|---|---|---|
Northern Sydney | North Shore Private | 51-70 | Royal North Shore Hospital Lung Cancer MDT |
| Sydney | Chris O'Brien Lifehouse | 31-50 | Royal Prince Alfred and Lifehouse Peritonectomy MDT |
Hunter New England | Lake Macquarie Private | 31-50 | Hunter New England Lung Cancer MDT |
| Northern Sydney | Sydney Adventist Hospital | 31-50 | Sydney Adventist Hospital Lung Cancer MDT |
| South Eastern Sydney | St Vincent's Private | 18-30 | The Kinghorn Cancer Centre Lung Cancer MDT |
| Western Sydney | Westmead Private | 31-50 | Western Sydney Local Health District Lung Cancer MDT |
| South Eastern Sydney | St George Private | 18-30 | St George and Sutherland Hospitals Lung Cancer MDT |
Northern Sydney | Macquarie University | 18-30 | Macquarie University Hospital Cancer Program Lung Cancer MDT |
| Nepean | Nepean Private | 18-30 | Nepean Cancer Care Centre Lung Cancer MDT |
| Sydney | Strathfield Private | 18-30 | - |
Codes
- Surgical caseload data sourced from Admitted Patient, Emergency Department Attendance, and Deaths Register (APEDDR) via Secure Analytics for Population Health Research and Intelligence (SAPHaRI), Centre for Epidemiology and Evidence, NSW Ministry of Health.
- In-scope diagnoses: C34
- In-scope procedures: 38438–00, 38438–01, 38438–02, 38440–00, 38440–01, 38441–00, 38441–01.
- Daly ME, Singh N, Ismaila N, Antonoff MB, Arenberg DA, Bradley J, et al. Management of stage III non–small-cell lung cancer: ASCO guideline. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2022;40(12):1356-84.
- Hoy H, Lynch T, Beck M. Surgical treatment of lung cancer. Critical Care Nursing Clinics. 2019;31(3):303-13.
- Haneuse S, Dominici F, Normand S-L, Schrag D. Assessment of between-hospital variation in readmission and mortality after cancer surgical procedures. JAMA Network Open. 2018;1(6):e183038-e.
- Hoffmann H, Passlick B, Ukena D, Wesselmann S. Surgical therapy for lung cancer: why it should be performed in high volume centres. Pneumologie (Stuttgart, Germany). 2020;74(10):670-7.
- Thai AA, Stuart E, Te Marvelde L, Milne R, Knight S, Whitfield K, et al. Hospital lung surgery volume and patient outcomes. Lung Cancer. 2019;129:22-7.
- Bilfinger TV, Albano D, Perwaiz M, Keresztes R, Nemesure B. Survival outcomes among lung cancer patients treated using a multidisciplinary team approach. Clinical lung cancer. 2018;19(4):346-51.
- Kowalczyk A, Jassem J. Multidisciplinary team care in advanced lung cancer. Translational Lung Cancer Research. 2020;9(4):1690.
- Liam C-K, Liam Y-S, Poh M-E, Wong C-K. Accuracy of lung cancer staging in the multidisciplinary team setting. Translational lung cancer research. 2020;9(4):1654.
- Jassem J. Tobacco smoking after diagnosis of cancer: clinical aspects. Translational lung cancer research. 2019;8(Suppl 1):S50.
- Warren GW, Alberg AJ, Cummings KM, Dresler C. Smoking cessation after a cancer diagnosis is associated with improved survival. Journal of Thoracic Oncology. 2020;15(5):705-8
