Quality assessment of breast cancer studies conducted with the Delphi technique.

Breast disease Pub Date : 2023-01-01 DOI:10.3233/BD-220079

Daniela Patino-Hernandez, Daniel G Fernández-Ávila, Óscar Mauricio Muñoz-Velandia, Isabel Del Socorro Moreno Luna

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Abstract

Background: The Delphi technique is a consensus method aiming to obtain statistical estimations from a qualitative approach, through an iterative process that leads to consensus within experts. The main characteristics of the technique include iteration, anonymity, feedback, and consensus reaching. When high-quality, quantitative evidence on a particular topic is insufficient, the Delphi technique can be used for making decisions in clinical scenarios. However, the quality of studies on breast cancer conducted with this technique, has not been assessed.

Objective: We aim to evaluate the quality of studies on breast cancer which used the Delphi technique as their method.

Methods: A quality assessment tool (Quali-D) was created through consensus among experts on the Delphi technique. Then, the tool was applied to studies on breast cancer which used the Delphi technique as their method.

Results: Studies conducted through the Delphi technique mainly assessed for quality indicators and expressed needs in patients with breast cancer. High-quality characteristics were reported in 63.89% of the studies. 98.61% used the Delphi technique due to lack of a more adequate method to solve their research question. 98.61% summarized and presented results in a clear way. In 91.67% of the studies, at least two rounds were conducted. 86.11% described the methods for expert selection in a complete manner. Only 54.17% of the studies reported an anonymous process and 4.17% of the studies disclosed conflicts of interest thoroughly.

Conclusions: A variety of topics were assessed through the Delphi technique in cases where no other technique would have been more appropriate for assessing these issues. Significant limitations are present in terms of anonymity and full disclosure of conflicts of interest. We found that the quality of studies conducted with the Delphi technique regarding breast cancer is overall good. However, the limitations of each study must be considered when applying their results to clinical practice.

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用德尔菲技术对乳腺癌研究进行质量评估。

背景:德尔菲技术是一种共识方法，旨在通过迭代过程从定性方法中获得统计估计，从而在专家内部达成共识。该技术的主要特点包括迭代、匿名、反馈和达成共识。当某一特定主题的高质量、定量证据不足时，德尔菲技术可用于在临床场景中做出决策。然而，用这种技术进行的乳腺癌研究的质量尚未得到评估。目的:评价用德尔菲法进行乳腺癌研究的质量。方法:采用德尔菲法，经专家协商一致，建立质量评价工具(quality - d)。然后，将该工具应用于以德尔菲技术为方法的乳腺癌研究。结果:通过德尔菲技术进行的研究主要是对乳腺癌患者的质量指标和表达需求进行评估。63.89%的研究报告了高质量特征。由于缺乏一种更充分的方法来解决他们的研究问题，98.61%的人使用德尔菲技术。98.61%对结果进行了清晰的总结和呈现。91.67%的研究至少进行了两轮。86.11%的人完整地描述了专家选择的方法。只有54.17%的研究报告了匿名过程，4.17%的研究彻底披露了利益冲突。结论:在没有其他技术更适合评估这些问题的情况下，通过德尔菲技术评估了各种主题。在匿名和充分披露利益冲突方面存在重大限制。我们发现用德尔菲技术进行的关于乳腺癌的研究质量总体上是好的。然而，在将每项研究的结果应用于临床实践时，必须考虑其局限性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Breast disease Medicine-Oncology

CiteScore

1.80

自引率

0.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： The recent expansion of work in the field of breast cancer inevitably will hasten discoveries that will have impact on patient outcome. The breadth of this research that spans basic science, clinical medicine, epidemiology, and public policy poses difficulties for investigators. Not only is it necessary to be facile in comprehending ideas from many disciplines, but also important to understand the public implications of these discoveries. Breast Disease publishes review issues devoted to an in-depth analysis of the scientific and public implications of recent research on a specific problem in breast cancer. Thus, the reviews will not only discuss recent discoveries but will also reflect on their impact in breast cancer research or clinical management.