Can more phone calls after cancer surgery keep patients out of the hospital?
NCT ID NCT05454280
First seen Sep 21, 2026 · Last updated Sep 21, 2026
Summary
Researchers are testing whether a more intensive follow-up plan after major cancer surgery can reduce emergency room visits, hospital readmissions, and deaths within 30 days. Patients in the intervention group receive scheduled nurse video visits, check-ins with a medical provider, and a referral for home health nursing. The trial compares this approach to standard post-discharge care in adults undergoing high-risk elective cancer operations.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- intensified post-discharge surveillance, including nurse video visits and home health nursing evaluation
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could give hospitals a clear plan for catching complications early after cancer surgery, when patients are most vulnerable.
- What could go wrong
- Extra check-ins may not catch problems faster than standard care, and some complications after major surgery cannot be prevented by monitoring alone. The trial may also show no difference between the two approaches.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 3
Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.
- Participants
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526 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Oct 2022
- Expected to finish
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Nov 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
First Registration Inclusion Criteria: * Age \> 18 years at diagnosis * ECOG performance status 0, 1, or 2, defined as Grade ECOG 0 Fully active, able to carry on all pre-disease performance without restriction 1. Restricted in physically strenuous activity but ambulatory and able to carry out work of a light or sedentary nature, e.g., light house work, office work 2. Ambulatory and capable of all self-care but unable to carry out any work activities. Up and about more than 50% of waking hours * Patients must have probable (i.e., clinically suspicious) or histologically/cytologically confirmed, primary or recurrent, malignant neoplasm, malignant neuroendocrine tumor, or carcinoma in situ (any stage). Patients undergoing major operations to resect or treat known or suspected malignancies of the head and neck, chest, abdomen, genitourinary tract, or extremities are eligible. Patients undergoing biopsies, outpatient procedures, superficial resections of cutaneous malignancies, or purely palliative operations are not eligible. These procedures are commonly performed in patients with malignant neoplasms, malignant neuroendocrine tumors, or carcinomas in situ, and are commonly "tracked" by hospitals and cancer centers participating in the ACS NSQIP Procedure Targeted option because they are often associated with higher rates of postoperative morbidity and mortality (compared to other, less complex cancer procedures). * Patient must be scheduled for elective major cancer surgery (as listed in 4.1.4) at FCCC \< 30 days after First Registration. Elective surgery is defined as: * Patient is scheduled to be brought from their home (or normal living environment) to FCCC on the day of the index surgery (or day prior as scheduled admission) AND * Surgery is not scheduled as urgent or emergent * Ability to understand and willingness to sign a written informed consent and HIPAA consent document * Geographical accessibility and willingness to return to FCCC for all preoperative and postoperative study assessments. First Registration Exclusion Criteria: * Any condition that might interfere with the subject's participation in the study, compliance with study requirements, or in the evaluation of the study results. Second Registration Inclusion Criteria: A patient will be eligible for continued inclusion in this study only if ALL of the following criteria apply at the time of Second Registration (one to two days prior to anticipated discharge). No exceptions or waivers will be granted for patients who do not meet the eligibility criteria. * Post * Elective (curative or palliative) major cancer surgery (as listed in 4.1.4 above) at the time of the index surgery (patient may have undergone more than one of these procedures) OR * Elective surgical procedure(s) listed as an option (i.e., CPT code) in the Surgical Risk Calculator webpage (patient may have undergone more than one of these procedures) For the purposes of this study, the procedure that was performed with the highest estimated risk of DSC (as predicted by the Surgical Risk Calculator) will be denoted at the time of Second Registration as the "index procedure" performed during the "index surgery". * Elective surgery \< 30 days after First Registration. Second Registration Exclusion Criteria: * Status post elective surgical procedure(s) not listed as options in the Surgical Risk Calculator webpage. This includes patients whose scheduled procedure was suspended due to unexpected findings, such as carcinomatosis.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Fox Chase Cancer Center - Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19111-2497, United States
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