Telemedicine Follow-Up for Early Laryngeal Cancer: a Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Care Close to Home Versus Standard of Care

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate whether Telemedicine follow-up is a satisfactory and safe alternative to traditional follow-up care for patients treated for early glottic (vocal cord) cancer, particularly those who live far from a specialized head and neck oncology centre (HNOC). The main questions it aims to answer are: Is patient satisfaction with Telemedicine follow-up comparable to standard care? Is the safety of Telemedicine follow-up (measured by recurrence rates, complications, and survival) comparable to in-person follow-up at an HNOC? Researchers will compare patients receiving Telemedicine follow-up in a nearby hospital with standard in-person follow-up at the HNOC, to see if remote evaluation of endoscopic procedures can maintain patient satisfaction and safety outcomes. Participants with a travel time of \> 45 minutes from a HNOC will: Be randomly assigned to either a Telemedicine follow-up group (in a nearby hospital, by a general ENT-surgeon) or a standard of care group Undergo follow-up including HD-laryngoscopy, according to clinical guidelines Have endoscopy videos evaluated remotely by specialists at the HNOC (= Telemedicine) (intervention group only) Complete surveys including patient-reported outcomes and experience measures at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

* patients who underwent TOLS for early stage glottic squamous cell carcinoma (T1 or carcinoma-in-situ)
* a one-way travel time to the HNOC of ≥45 minutes (intervention group) or \< 30 minutes (control group)
* within 2 years postoperatively
* can speak and write Dutch

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients will be excluded if they continue to undergo follow-up for other (head and neck) cancers in the HNOC.

Conditions3

Browse More Trials