Cancer Care Navigation Improves Timeliness of Treatment in Head and Neck Cancer

BACKGROUND: Timely access to oncologic care is critical for patients with head and neck cancer (HNC), yet delays in treatment remain widespread. We sought to determine whether implementation of a care navigation program was associated with improved timeliness. METHODS: Four hunded and four adult patients who underwent HNC resection with free flap reconstruction were retrospectively reviewed. The primary outcome was time to adjuvant therapy and disease-free survival. RESULTS: Median [IQR] age was 64 [58-73] years and 133 (33%) were women. Significant interval decreases were observed from surgery to initiation of adjuvant radiotherapy (56 [39-83] vs. 45 [31-64] days, p = 0.004). Log-rank testing revealed no difference in disease-free survival between pre- and postprogram cohorts (p = 0.7695). CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of a care navigation program was associated with significant reductions in time to treatment. These findings suggest that structured pathways can meaningfully improve oncologic care delivery for HNC patients.