I. How difficult is it to standardize treatment for cancer patients? Irregular treatment of tumors is very common in hospitals in China, and the resulting burden of patient care and health risks are increasing. Irregular treatment is also an important cause of cancer recurrence. A considerable number of cancer patients are already suffering from systemic diseases when they are initially diagnosed, and surgery can only solve local problems, which is why most cancer patients need standardized adjuvant therapy (including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted therapy). Currently, standardized adjuvant therapy is the most effective measure to minimize the risk of recurrence and metastasis. Currently, at least 15% of cancer patients in China die at an accelerated rate due to unregulated treatment. However, at present, there is considerable arbitrariness and irregularity in tumor treatment in China. Doctors of various disciplines often prefer their familiar treatment options for cancer patients who visit them, and consider other methods only after failure, which not only increases the financial burden of patients but also delays the timing of treatment. “Previously, primary care doctors were afraid to use anti-tumor drugs, and now, due to restricted knowledge, many doctors treat haphazardly without understanding patients’ indications, and irregular use in dosage and usage abounds.” As a systemic disease, cancer has its own limitations whether it is treated locally or systemically, and the organic combination of both or multiple therapies and multidisciplinary collaboration is an effective way to improve the efficacy of cancer treatment. At present, the treatment of malignant tumors mainly relies on three main therapeutic tools, such as surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The relative contribution of these three major treatment means to tumor treatment are: 22% (48.9%) of malignant tumors curable by surgery, 18% (40%) of malignant tumors curable by radiation therapy, and 5% (11.1%) of malignant tumors curable by chemotherapy. The standardized treatment of cancer should be a collaborative consultation among multiple departments such as medical oncology, surgical oncology, radiotherapy, pathology, etc., strictly following the guidelines or norms of cancer treatment, and jointly formulating an individualized, standardized and comprehensive treatment plan in accordance with the patient’s condition, which is called multidisciplinary collaboration (MDT for short) in the international arena. The majority of hospitals do not have such a system and capability. As a result, Chinese cancer patients go around to different departments and doctors to get different opinions on treatment. In addition, for the sake of economic benefits, a few medical institutions admit patients with related tumors regardless of whether they can be treated or not, and even surgeons make chemotherapy plans for patients on behalf of medical doctors, which has led to the proliferation of unregulated treatment behaviors. Prof. Sun said, “For the same type of tumor in the same clinical stage, even if the patients’ physical function is basically the same, doctors in different hospitals have their own treatment methods, but patients often don’t know whose method is better among doctors A, B and C”. Under such circumstances, choosing a large hospital for multidisciplinary collaborative treatment becomes the most important choice. The progress of cancer treatment is very fast and the amount of knowledge updated is very huge. It is impossible for any doctor to master all the knowledge of cancer treatment, and any doctor may make mistakes in choosing the treatment plan due to his or her knowledge limitation. Cancer treatment is a long process, and at each stage of the disease treatment, the treatment plan needs to be finely crafted and adjusted to the patient’s specific situation, and an inappropriate or completely wrong plan will often cause irreversible consequences to the patient. Therefore, patients should not trust any one specialist and should learn to “compare” and consult several doctors before implementing a treatment plan to avoid misdiagnosis and mistreatment, over-treatment and non-standardized treatment. For patients who want to find the latest treatment plan, they can also ask cancer experts from developed countries to give diagnosis and treatment advice through international consultation. 4. Doctors should not refuse expert consultation When cancer patients raise questions about diagnosis or request for consultation in an anxious tone, many doctors feel hurt, thinking that patients do not agree with their diagnosis and try to find a better doctor instead. This is a very wrong idea, and the doctor in charge should be equally concerned about misdiagnosis and misdiagnosis and the possible consequences of unnecessary treatment of the patient as a result of misdiagnosis and misdiagnosis. No doctor can have all the knowledge about cancer treatment and cannot prevent himself from making mistakes during the treatment process. To avoid accidents that may lead to medical errors due to misdiagnosis and mistreatment, it is very important for patients to seek consultation opinions before starting to receive treatment, which provides a safeguard for the doctor’s own professional status, not to mention that the consultation opinions also provide treatment recommendations that are of comparative and reference value to the treating doctor. Therefore, a wise doctor should welcome and even encourage patients to seek the services of a specialist. Robert Kersma, a renowned physician at Columbia University Medical Center, in New York City in 2008 In a 2008 article in the New York Times titled “The Patient’s View of Consultation,” Kersma wrote, “Consultation advice has undoubtedly saved many patients’ lives and is gaining importance in the growing public concern over medical errors. But it is surprising how many physicians and patients ignore consultation opinions, and how embarrassed and upset they are. Sometimes I subconsciously feel defensive unease when patients tell me that they want another medical opinion. But I agree to their requests. I wish more physicians didn’t need to be patients themselves one day to re-focus on the importance of expert consultation opinions with a professional eye.”