Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, National Comprehensive Cancer Network, and John A. Gentile, Jr, Chairman, Harborside Press, LLC, discuss the early days of NCCN, controversies that surrounded the first meeting, oncologists’ embrace of the guidelines, and how the organization has evolved over the past 20 years.
Amy Cyr, MD, of the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine, discusses advances made in the treatment of early-stage breast cancer: less radiation and a shorter course, the rising use of molecular profiling, and less invasive surgery and reduced amounts of surgery.
Andrew J. Armstrong, MD, ScM, of Duke Cancer Institute, discusses the recent practice-changing landmark studies that showed significant increases in survival for men with castration-resistant prostate cancer and led to updates in the NCCN Guidelines for this disease.
Mario E. Lacouture, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the effect on patients of dermatologic toxicities associated with targeted therapies: their psychosocial impact, financial burden, physiological pain, and potential to alter therapy. But the side effects of targeted treatments can and should be addressed.
Clifford Goodman, PhD, of the The Lewin Group, and Peter B. Bach, MD, MAPP, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discuss the affordability of cancer care, the “financial toxicities” of high drug prices, and what could and should be done about it.
John A. Thompson, MD, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, discusses the latest immunotherapeutics for advanced melanoma, including pembrolizumab, trametinib, nivolumab, and dabrafenib.
