Primary care docs participating in breast cancer decisions

Most women in a new U.S. survey said their primary care physician was involved in their breast cancer care during treatment, and rated their doctor’s engagement and communication levels as high.

Researchers found, though, that more primary care provider (PCP) involvement was only tied to a better perception of treatment decisions by the survey participants, who all had newly diagnosed breast cancer, when compared to low PCP involvement.

“While we hypothesized that many women receive high quality primary care during breast cancer treatment, we were surprised that the majority of women in our study also reported high levels of engagement and communication with their PCP during cancer treatment, when the care is typically focused primarily on treating the cancer,” said lead author and IHPI member Lauren Wallner.