Patient navigation was founded at the New York’s Harlem Hospital Center by Dr. Harold Freeman to improve cancer mortality rates among the poor and underserved in New York. Patient navigators work one-on-one with patients to develop solutions to overcome financial, logistical, cultural, or social barriers throughout their cancer journey.

In our patient navigation programme, we ensure treatment continuity and improvement in survivorship by removing barriers to access and care. By systematically removing the barriers to timely healthcare access and ensuring that patients are supported throughout the care continuum, the proportion of patients with early stage breast cancer outcomes improved from 6% to 41%, and the 5-year survival rates rapidly increased from 39% to 70%. So far, in our demonstration project in collaboration with Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah in Klang, we have shown that patient navigation reduces the barriers to care and improves the patient adherence to therapy.