BRIDGEing the Gap: Impact of a Short Virtual Course on Delivering Global‐Standard Breast Cancer Care in Low‐Resource Settings

Background Access to guideline‐concordant global‐standard breast cancer care remains limited in many low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs), where high‐cost technologies for diagnostics, surgical diagnosis and treatment (such as radioisotope mapping, ICG fluorescence, and intraoperative margin assessment) are not widely available. The BRIDGE Course (Breast Surgery Resource Integration & Development for Global Excellence) was designed as a short, virtual educational program to educate and update surgeons with validated, low‐cost techniques that ensure oncologic safety while addressing resource constraints. Methods A 7‐h online course was designed and conducted in September 2025 with participation from international and national faculty. Content emphasized pragmatic adaptations of global guidelines, including triple assessment, surgical decision‐making for mastectomy versus breast conservation, sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) using methylene blue and fluorescein torch, and low‐cost oncoplastic approaches. Pre‐ and post‐course surveys assessed baseline practice, perceived barriers, satisfaction, confidence, and intent to implement. Descriptive statistics were analyzed. Results Seventy‐five participants completed the pre‐course survey and 66 completed the post‐course survey. At baseline, mastectomy was the most common primary operation (30.7%), whereas only 20% predominantly performed breast‐conserving surgery; SLNB was mainly performed using methylene blue (68.5%). Reported barriers included lack of resources, training gaps, and patient mindset. Post‐course, ≥ 85% of participants reported improved confidence across all domains: triple assessment (83% strongly agreed), mastectomy versus BCS decision‐making (74%), SLNB with low‐cost tracers (66%), and complication management (60%). Implementation intent was high, with nearly all (96%) planning to adopt at least one new technique and all intending to share knowledge with colleagues or trainees. Conclusion The BRIDGE Course successfully enhanced knowledge and confidence in resource‐adapted breast cancer surgery, with strong intent to implement and improve practices. Such short, focused virtual programs may serve as a scalable model for narrowing disparities in breast cancer care across LMICs.