Survivorship discharge pathway to free specialist clinic capacity

Supported by a VICS Cancer Survivorship Program grant, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre is implementing a project to safely discharge cancer survivors, who are more than 5 years post curative treatment, from long-term specialist follow-up. Led by the Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre, the initiative will establish a standardised discharge pathway supported by clear guidance for general practitioners and rapid re-entry pathways if specialist care is needed. The project will identify eligible patients, develop clinician-agreed discharge criteria, and introduce streamlined workflows and patient information.

By transitioning appropriate survivors to primary care, the initiative aims to reduce low-value outpatient appointments while maintaining safe, coordinated survivorship care.