Time to Measure: A Proposed Theoretical Model for Head and Neck Cancer Intervals of Care

Abstract

Head and neck cancer care delays are challenging, given the complexity of cancer care pathways, which leads to delays throughout the patient journey, from the symptom onset to treatment completion. Current models and literature addressing cancer care are limited by heterogeneous definitions of care intervals, a focus on specific aspects of the patient journey instead of the whole care continuum, and limited use of implementation science to target gaps in implementing evidence-based interventions. Here, we propose the Head and Neck Cancer TImely aCess TO Care Model as an approach to conceptualize, measure, and address delays in diverse health systems.