(Common) Data Elements in Radiation Oncology: A Systematic Literature Review.

Purpose: Structured medical data documentation is highly relevant in a data-driven discipline such as radiation oncology. Defined (common) data elements (CDEs) can be used to record data in clinical trials, health records, or computer systems for improved standardization and data exchange. The International Society for Radiation Oncology Informatics initiated a project for a scientific literature analysis of defined data elements for structured documentation in radiation oncology.

Methods: We performed a systematic literature review on both PubMed and Scopus to analyze publications relevant to the utilization of specified data elements for the documentation of radiation therapy (RT)-related information. Relevant publications were retrieved as full-text and searched for published data elements. Finally, the extracted data elements were quantitatively analyzed and classified.

Results: We found a total of 452 publications, of which 46 were considered relevant for structured data documentation. Twenty-nine publications addressed defined RT-specific data elements, of which 12 publications provided data elements. Only two publications focused on data elements in radiation oncology. The 29 analyzed publications were heterogeneous regarding the subject and usage of the defined data elements, and different concepts/terms for defined data elements were used.

Conclusion: The literature about structured data documentation in radiation oncology using defined data elements is scarce. There is a need for a comprehensive list of RT-specific CDEs the radio-oncologic community can rely on. As it has been done in other medical fields, establishing such a list would be of great value for clinical practice and research as it would promote interoperability and standardization.