VICS Optimal Care Summits colorectal cancer consultation 2024–25
The VICS’ third strategic consultation on patterns of care for colorectal cancer will run from late 2024 to early 2025.
The expert advisory group below will review progress in colorectal cancer care and outcomes for Victorians affected by colorectal cancer since our second summit on this topic, in 2018. The VICS will survey clinicians and other stakeholders across Victoria about barriers to and enablers of optimal care, and identify unwarranted variations in care and outcomes in Victoria.
At a live summit event on Friday 28 February 2025, multidisciplinary clinicians, consumers, and other stakeholders will codesign actions to address priority variations.
If you are involved in care or support for Victorians affected by colorectal cancer, or if you have been affected yourself, please fill in this quick form to be involved in the consultation.
The information you provide will be used only by the VICS Optimal Care Summits team for recruiting each expert advisory group, consultation, surveys, prioritising variations, prioritising improvements, and summit invitations.
VICS Optimal Care Summits
Variations
The VICS, our expert advisory group below, and the Victorian Department of Health’s Analysis of Linked Information in Cancer (ALIC) data unit agreed on key indicators relevant to colorectal cancer care across Victoria, from a range of linked cancer datasets. The VICS Optimal Care Summits team reviewed data on each indicator to identify unwarranted variations, which were then cross-checked by the ALIC team and analysed for clinical significance by the advisory group.
- The number of younger people being diagnosed with colorectal cancer has been steadily increasing since 2005
- Aboriginal Victorians are more likely to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer
- People living in regional and rural areas are more likely to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer
- Younger patients with colorectal cancer are diagnosed with more advanced cancer
- Increasing proportion of colorectal cancer patients presenting to an emergency department for emergency surgery
- People aged 50-74 who have a positive screen result for colorectal cancer are waiting longer to have a colonoscopy
- Lower proportion, in regional areas, of patients being discussed at multidisciplinary meetings (MDMs)
- Low rates, in some areas, of recording cancer stage in MDMs
- Low rates, statewide, of recording patients’ ECOG status in MDMs
- Low rates, statewide, of supportive care screening
- Low rates, statewide, of communicating treatment plans to patients’ GPs
- Variations, by area, in time from diagnosis to patients receiving any treatment within 6 weeks for stage 1,2 and 3 colorectal cancer
- Variations, by area, in time from diagnosis to patients receiving any treatment within 6 weeks for stage 4 colorectal cancer
- Longer-than median times, in some regions, between colonoscopy and first treatment
- Low proportion of patients, statewide, who see a dietitian in hospital within 6 months of diagnosis
- Low proportion of patients, statewide, who see a physiotherapist during admission within 3 months of diagnosis
- The number of younger people dying with colorectal cancer has been steadily increasing over the past 17 years
- Aboriginal Victorians are more likely to die from colorectal cancer
- Lower survival rates in the Loddon Mallee region, for patients with stage 1 and 4 colorectal cancer
- Lower survival rates, in Gippsland, for patients with stage 2 colorectal cancer
- Low proportion, statewide, of stage 4 colorectal cancer patients who had an advance care directive statewide
- Low proportion of patients, statewide, admitted for palliative care within 12 months prior to death
- High proportion of patients, statewide, who presented to an emergency department within 30 days prior to death.
The VICS are now surveying the expert advisory group and other stakeholders in colorectal cancer care from across Victoria, to prioritise these variations for discussion at the summit on 28 February.
Expert advisory group
- Dr Geoff Chong (Co-chair) – Medical oncologist, Austin Health
- Dr Simon Hyde (Co-chair) – Director Gynaecological Oncology, Mercy Hospital for Women
- Mr William Teoh (Co-chair) – Colorectal surgeon, Monash Health
- Mei Mei Ang – Gastrointestinal (colorectal) cancer nurse consultant, Alfred Health
- Dr Louise Bettiol – General practitioner and GP Clinical Director, LMICS
- Dr Bradley Bidwell – General surgeon and Clinical Director of Surgery, Northeast Health Wangaratta
- Dr Stephen Brown – Medical oncologist and Clinical Director of Medical Oncology, Grampians Health
- Dr Pranav Dorwal – Molecular anatomical pathologist, Monash Health
- Mr Alexander Heriot – Surgeon and Director of Cancer Surgery, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
- Karen Lee – Dietitian, Austin Health
- Dr Sachin Joshi – Medical oncologist, Latrobe Regional Hospital
- Kylie Leavy – Stomal therapy nurse, Monash Health
- Prof. Sue-Anne McLachlan – Medical oncologist, St Vincent’s Hospital
- Dr Ayesha Saqib – Colorectal oncologist, Goulburn Valley Health
- Dr Madhu Singh – Colorectal oncologist, Barwon Health
- Mr Neil Strugnell – Colorectal surgery consultant, Northern Health
- Dr Neetu Tejani – Radiation oncologist, Bendigo Health.
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