Abstract: A method for determining an optimized surveillance schedule of follow-up diagnostic tests and doctor visits considers the tradeoff between timely detection of relapse and the cost of the diagnostic procedures. A method for generating a surveillance schedule for monitoring a recurrence of a condition includes the steps of (a) scheduling an initial testing date to test for the recurrence of the condition; (b) establishing a threshold, wherein the threshold is the cost associated with a subsequent testing date over the cost per recurrence detected; and (c) scheduling each subsequent testing date to test for the recurrence of the condition when a cumulative risk of recurrence of the condition since the previous testing date exceeds the threshold. A system utilizing this method is also disclosed.

Abstract: A method for determining an optimized surveillance schedule of follow-up diagnostic tests and doctor visits considers the tradeoff between timely detection of relapse and the cost of the diagnostic procedures. Determining subsequent testing dates for detection of a disease includes the steps of: a.) choosing a surveillance schedule, wherein the surveillance schedule includes a plurality of time segments for which a corresponding test is scheduled, wherein the first surveillance schedule has associated therewith a plurality of probabilities representing the probabilities that relapse will be detected in the corresponding plurality of time segments of the surveillance schedule; b.) determining a solution for an equation ? i = m + 1 n ? P ? ( i ) ? C / T and c.) delaying each subsequent testing date until the cost per detected relapse is below a probability threshold of C/T.