Table 1 Summary of follow-up issues and evidence
Follow-up issues | Summary of evidence |
|---|---|
Survival advantage | None reported but literature relatively underpowered |
Doing no follow-up | Never been tested in a randomized trial |
ASCO guidance [3] | Recommendations have not been tested in randomized controlled trials |
NICE guidance [4] | No evidence provided for the recommended limit of follow-up to 2 to 3 years |
| Â | Local recurrence risk maintained for much longer than recommended follow-up period |
Primary care follow-up | Seems acceptable and good, but small trial (<300 patients) [7, 8] |
| Â | General practitioners needed training, and consultations take more time! |
Telephone contact | Some evidence from an unpublished small regional UK trial [15] |
Nurses | Acceptable to patients – not necessarily much cheaper |
Nonpatient benefits | Audit, research, measuring quality of service, identification of unexpected toxicities of new drugs |