Amy Pierre, RN, MSN, ANP-BC
Tammy Triglianos, DNP, ANP-BC, AOCNP
At 8 am, the infusion chairs are already full. The oncologist is in a room seeing a new patient consult, the pharmacist is adjusting doses based on new lab values, and the advanced practitioner (AP) is sitting with a patient—reviewing symptoms, discussing how to manage treatment side effects, and helping determine whether treatment should proceed that day. This scene plays out daily in oncology practices across the country and reflects a reality many physicians know well: modern cancer care is a team effort, and APs are central to this scenario.
Oncology care has become more complex, but also more successful. The rapid pace of therapeutic innovation has transformed outcomes while introducing new demands for the oncology care team: novel agents bring nuanced and sometimes unpredictable toxicity profiles; treatment algorithms require continuous reevaluation as indications expand; and the evidence base we practice from today may look meaningfully different by next year. Layered on top of this is the art of aligning evidence with individual patient values, a clinical skill requiring us to hold efficacy, safety, quality of life, and individual patient values in careful balance, often in a single conversation.
First, the Good News
The good news is that our patients are and living longer. This progress comes with new challenges and complexity, with an increase in number of patient visits, more complex follow-up, and more demands on the workforce. In addition, cancer incidence continues to rise, including among younger populations, and care coordination has grown more demanding, requiring seamless collaboration across multidisciplinary teams.
All of this is occurring against the backdrop of a constrained and aging hematology-oncology physician workforce. This is not simply a capacity problem, it is a structural one, and it has drawn national attention.
This is precisely where APs have stepped forward and have been acknowledged in The President’s Cancer Panel’s 2026 report, Ensuring a Strong Future for America’s Cancer Workforce. The report explicitly identifies APs as a critical workforce role requiring expanded training and educational investment, positioning AP development as a core strategy for filling gaps in cancer care delivery and strengthening care team capacity. Advanced practitioners have long been integral members of the oncology care team, but as the demands of cancer care have intensified, their roles have expanded in parallel.
JADPRO Live Conference for APs
Oncology-trained APs deliver a substantial share of patient care in both academic and community settings—managing complex toxicities, guiding treatment decisions, championing survivorship programs, and improving access to care. Beyond direct care, APs are driving innovation and quality improvement, expanding clinical trial access, and developing the patient education frameworks that improve adherence and outcomes. These contributions are significant to value-based oncology care. JADPRO Live is an educational conference that presents the latest clinical insights and best practices to APs in oncology. The JADPRO Live annual conference has emerged as the flagship annual meeting for oncology APs and the forum where this expertise is built, shared, and continuously advanced.
JADPRO Live serves as a vital ecosystem for this evolving field. It is more than a conference; it is a launchpad where the newest science is translated into the language of daily practice. By fostering rigorous peer-to-peer exchange and intentional interprofessional collaboration, JADPRO Live provides a roadmap for real-world implementation. The curriculum reflects the high-stakes reality of the clinic. Sessions are often case-based and led by APs—or co-presented by MD/AP —mirroring the team-based approach required in modern practice. From deep-dive workshops on biomarker testing and the management of novel adverse events to seminars on professional leadership, the content ensures that APs are not just keeping pace with innovation but are actively steering its delivery.
The Physician-AP Partnership
The synergy between physicians and APs is the most effective hedge we have against the mounting pressures of the oncology field. When this collaboration is optimized, the benefits are measurable. Shared responsibility means practices can expand patient access, decrease delays in care, and significantly reduce AP or physician burnout, allowing each provider to work at the top of their license. This partnership ensures a safety net of continuity; while a physician may be in the operating room or a research-intensive setting, the AP is often the first to identify a burgeoning toxicity or a barrier to trial eligibility. This creates a care model that is not only more sustainable but more patient-centric. The core of this success is a shared dialect.
The future of oncology care depends on a workforce that is empowered, highly educated, and fully integrated. Modern oncology has made truly collaborative models not just preferable, but necessary. The path forward is a shared one. We ask physicians to bring APs fully into the clinical and strategic conversation—not just at the bedside, but in the boardroom, the protocol meeting, and the trial design process. We ask APs to continue raising the bar: pursuing rigorous education, seeking mentorship, and holding themselves to the same standard of excellence the field demands. And we invite both physicians and APs in oncology to JADPRO Live—not as separate audiences, but as partners in the same room, building the shared clinical language that ultimately serves our patients.
Advanced practitioners are not extenders of care — they are critical partners whose expertise strengthens team-based oncology practice. When physicians and APs collaborate effectively, sharing responsibility, communication, and mutual respect, patients benefit through more coordinated, responsive, and high-quality care.
JADPRO Live will be held October 15-18, 2026, in Minneapolis. For more information, visit JADPROLive.com.
DISCLOSURE: Dr. Triglianos is Vice President, Clinical Affairs, for Conexiant, publisher of The ASCO Post and partner in JADPRO Live. Ms. Pierre reported no conflicts of interest.
Amy Pierre, MSN, ANP-BC is a Senior Clinical Director & Nurse Practitioner specializing in DEI in Healthcare and Myeloma Research. She is a Senior Clinical Director at Flatiron Health in Research Oncology. Tammy Triglianos, DNP, ANP-BC, AOCNP, is Vice President, Clinical Affairs,for Conexiant, publisher of The ASCO Post and JADPRO, and an oncology nurse practitioner.
