Integrated Cancer Services in Thailand: A Prototype for Excellence (CEICS)

May 14, 2026 updated by: Saengrawee Thanthong, Chulabhorn Cancer Center

Development and Implementation of a Prototype Centre of Excellence in Integrated Cancer Services in Thailand: A Feasibility Study

Cancer is a significant health crisis globally and specifically within Thailand, where it affects more than 122,000 individuals every year and leads to approximately 86,000 deaths. Beyond the physical and emotional toll on patients, the disease creates immense social and economic challenges.

In Thailand, cancer treatment costs exceed 26 billion baht (about $800 million USD) annually. Families often face out-of-pocket costs for cancer care that exceed 30% to 40% of their total household income. Furthermore, the aging of Thai society and lifestyle changes-such as "Westernized" diets and sedentary behavior-are expected to drive these numbers even higher. This situation has created an urgent need for new healthcare models that reduce the burden on major hospitals and make care more accessible to the public. The Project Goal: A new model of care to address these challenges: Researchers developed a prototype Center of Excellence in Integrated Cancer Services. The goal was to test whether a specialized cancer unit could be successfully integrated into a local community clinic rather than functioning as a large, separate hospital.

The study used Donabedian's model to evaluate quality, focusing on three specific areas: Structure: The physical setting, equipment, and staff. Process: How the services are actually delivered and Outcomes: The results of the care and the satisfaction of those involved. Phase of Development and Implementation The project was a three-year initiative funded by the National Science, Research, and Innovation Fund of Thailand. Phase 1: Focused on the conceptual design of the center. Phase 2: Involved detailed planning and the development of digital information systems. This is at Phase 3: Focused on the actual implementation and testing of the prototype center in Bangkok

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Services Provided to the Community The center followed Thailand's national "7-branch" Cancer Service Plan, focusing specifically on the first two foundational branches for this pilot phase :Cancer Prevention and Risk Reduction: Counseling on healthy lifestyle modifications. Programs to reduce tobacco and alcohol use. Education regarding the HPV vaccine. General health literacy promotion to help people understand their risks. Cancer Screening and Early Detection: Clinical breast exams to check for abnormalities. Cervical cancer screening. Colorectal cancer screening. Risk assessments and established protocols to refer patients to major hospitals if abnormalities were found.

The other five branches-diagnosis, treatment, palliative care, informatics, and research-were supported through integrated referral pathways rather than being performed directly at the community unit.

Digital Innovation and Technology: A key feature of the center was the use of health information technology to bridge the gap between patients and providers. These tools included: Mobile Health Applications: Used for tracking symptoms and providing educational outreach. Electronic Health Records (EHRs): Facilitated real-time data sharing among the care team.

Virtual Consultations: Allowed for remote support and counseling. Artificial Intelligence (AI): The center planned for future integration of AI to assist in more accurate and efficient cancer screening

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

358

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Thailand
      • Bangkok, Thailand, 10210
        • Princess Agrarajakumari Faculty of Nursing, Chulabhorn Royal Academy

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Group 1: Service Recipients

This group included patients and their family members who received services at the prototype center. The criteria for inclusion were the following:

Age: Must be 20 years or older. Capacity: Must be able to express their opinions regarding the comprehensive cancer services.

Consent: Must be willing to participate in the research study. Group 2: Service Providers

This group consisted of 30 healthcare professionals (such as physicians, nurses, and pharmacists) directly involved in delivering care. The criteria for inclusion were:

,Age and Sex: Must be at least 20 years old; there were no restrictions regarding sex.

Professional Status: Must be actively providing services at the Comprehensive Cancer Centre of Excellence or its affiliated network facilities.

Knowledge Base: Must possess specific knowledge of the center's administrative and service systems.

Consent: Must express a willingness to participate in the study. Group 3: Cancer Care Experts

This group included 15 experts (administrators, academics, and researchers) who provided qualitative evaluation. The criteria for inclusion were:

Professional Experience: Must have a minimum of five years of experience in the field of cancer care.

Expertise: Must have the ability to provide deep insights into comprehensive cancer services.

Consent: Must be willing to participate in the research. Note: There were no restrictions regarding the sex or age of these experts.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Group 1 (Service Recipients): Participants were required to be at least 20 years old, have the ability to express their opinions regarding the center's services, and be willing to participate in the study.

Group 2 (Service Providers): Eligible healthcare professionals had to be at least 20 years old, be actively providing services at the prototype center or its affiliated facilities, and possess specific knowledge of the center's administrative and service systems.

Group 3 (Cancer Care Experts): These individuals were required to have a minimum of five years of experience in cancer care and the capacity to provide deep insights into comprehensive cancer services. The sources note there were no restrictions regarding the sex or age of these experts

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Prototype Centre of Excellence in Integrated Cancer Services

The intervention, as a pilot unit, was established within the Warm Community Nurse Clinic to deliver community-based cancer prevention and screening services

. It highlights the model's core purpose as an integrated healthcare hub designed to test the feasibility of scaling such centres nationwide in Thailand
Other: Health Service Delivery Model
The intervention in this study is the development and implementation of a prototype Centre of Excellence (COE) in Integrated Cancer Services in Bangkok, Thailand. This model is fundamentally distinguished by its integration into a local community setting-specifically established within the Warm Community Nurse Clinic-rather than functioning as a standalone, large-scale hospital. By leveraging the community's existing familiarity with the clinic, the intervention aims to improve accessibility and trust while reducing the financial and logistical burdens typically associated with seeking cancer care at major medical centers.
Other Names:
  • Lak Si is Alert to Fight Cancer

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Satisfaction Levels with Service Delivery
Time Frame: Data was collected over the 12-month implementation period of Phase 3, from October 2023 to September 2024
Satisfaction is measured across three domains: Structure (the physical setting and resources), Process (the delivery of care and communication), and Outcomes (the results and perceived benefits)
Data was collected over the 12-month implementation period of Phase 3, from October 2023 to September 2024

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Chulabhorn Cancer Center

Collaborators

Chulabhorn Royal Academy

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Vilaivan Thongcharoen, PhD, PAFN, CRA

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

March 2, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

July 13, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

July 13, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 14, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 14, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

May 20, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 14, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 50182
  • 180873 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Thailand Science Research and Innovation)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

According to the sources, the research was conducted with strict protocols to maintain participant confidentiality and anonymity, including the use of anonymous codes and secure data storage. Crucially, the study's ethical guidelines mandated that all data were to be destroyed one year after the completion of the study. While the manuscript specifies that all data supporting the findings are included within the article and its supplementary materials, the raw individual participant data (IPD) is not available for sharing to ensure the protection of participant privacy and to remain in compliance with the data management plan approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of Chulabhorn Royal Academy.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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