The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute announced recently that New England Cancer Specialists is the newest member of the Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative. Participation in the Collaborative reflects a demonstrated commitment to excellence by meeting a wide array of standards and best practices. Although New England Cancer Specialists is the first physician practice to become a member of the Collaborative, the 2 organizations have a long history of informal collaboration reaching back more than 30 years.
Laurie H. Glimcher, MD
“We are very pleased to welcome all the physicians and staff of New England Cancer Specialists as a new member of the Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative. The Collaborative furthers our core mission to relieve the burden of cancer for as many people as possible, which is done by conducting research to develop new and better therapies, providing expert and compassionate care for patients, and extending our expertise and working with other carefully selected care providers, such as New England Cancer Specialists,” said Laurie H. Glimcher, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Goals of the Collaborative
The Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative helps disseminate the latest and most effective, evidence-based best practices and standards to its members. Members of the Cancer Care Collaborative take advantage of ongoing consultations and access to support services, such as on-site specialty second opinion clinics, clinical trials, tumor board conferences, and physician lectures.
Dana-Farber and New England Cancer Specialists will collaborate on enhancing patient access to Dana-Farber for next-day appointments as needed. New England Cancer Specialists will have access to Dana-Farber’s clinical trials and to various education and training programs for physicians and staff, including the Collaborative’s tumor boards, where complex cases are discussed with specialists at Dana-Farber. Dana-Farber will also assist New England Cancer Specialists as the practice further develops existing patient programs in areas such as palliative care, genetic counseling, and survivorship. ■
