Guest Editor’s Note: In October, the Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO) held its annual international conference in Boston. The theme was “The Future of Integrative Oncology,” with presentations and workshops focused on evidence-based integrative therapies and innovative research methodologies. ...
When Julie began chemotherapy for breast cancer, her oncologist adjusted antiemetics weekly and carefully tracked neutrophil counts. Still, no one asked about the panic attacks that kept her awake at night. She told herself this was just part of cancer. It was not until she stopped showing up for...
The Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) published its World Cancer Declaration 2025–2035 framework on November 19, 2025.1 The declaration urges governments and policymakers to take decisive action to reduce the global burden of cancer; promote equitable access to prevention, diagnosis,...
As a medical oncologist and palliative care physician, I have spent years preparing for difficult conversations. I’ve guided patients and families through the uncertainty of cancer, helped them navigate complex decisions, and sought meaning amid shifting prognoses. As an academic, I teach future...
A recent large, retrospective study by Giblon et al has found that individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities face an increased risk of developing cancer, higher symptom burden once they get cancer compared with those without such disabilities, and disparities in accessing...
Allison J. Applebaum, PhD, FAPOS, recently announced the launch of the website for the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York (www.mountsinai.org/care/palliative-care/elbaum-center-caregiving). Dr. Applebaum is Director of the...
A new clinical guideline from the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is the first to focus on radiation therapy for patients with gastric cancer. The recommendations outline radiation therapy’s role in multidisciplinary care, including best practices for patient selection, integration...
“Pretreatment geriatric assessment in older adults with acute myeloid leukemia is feasible, can identify several functional impairments, and [can] guide the selection of treatment intensity,” resulting in low rates of early mortality, according to Vijaya R. Bhatt, MBBS, MS, of the University of...
Based on the results of a multicenter cross-sectional survey study published in JAMA Network Open by Raman et al, patients with blood cancer who were potentially hospice-eligible placed the greatest importance on transfusion access compared with routine hospice services. “The high value placed on...
Despite numerous studies showing the benefits of integrating palliative care in both the early- and advanced-stage cancer settings,1 palliative care remains underutilized for most patients with cancer. A recent study by the American Cancer Society found that only 10% of Medicare beneficiaries with...
Although palliative care use has increased over time among young adults with advanced cancers in the United States, new research led by the American Cancer Society (ACS) found that utilization still remains very low. The report was presented at the 2025 ASCO Quality Care Symposium (Abstract 320)....
In a linked Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)–Medicare analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Canavan et al found that receipt of systemic anticancer therapy (SACT) at the end of life (EOL) was associated with higher rates of EOL emergency department (ED) use,...
The process of obtaining insurance prior authorization before a medical procedure, service, or medication prescription has typically been left to clinicians. However, as cancer therapies grow increasingly complex, the burden of navigating insurance prior authorization is increasingly being shared...
For patients with recurrent retroperitoneal sarcomas that cannot be treated surgically, treatment choices are limited. These tumors can grow in the abdomen adjacent to vital organs or enmeshed within the bowel. Given their radioresistant nature, they require high doses of radiation that risk...
Each year, nearly 90,000 adolescents and young adults (AYAs; aged 15–39) are diagnosed with cancer, and approximately 9,300 die of the disease.1 And although the 5-year survival rate among these young patients is approaching 80%, it lags behind that of the pediatric population, whose 5-year...
As the global population ages, oncology faces an urgent challenge: ensuring that health-care professionals are adequately trained to address the unique complexities of cancer care for older adults. Despite the increasing prevalence of cancer in this demographic, geriatric oncology education remains ...
Research has shown that pain is among the most commonly experienced and feared aspects of a cancer diagnosis.1 It’s easy to understand why. In fact, cancer-related pain is so ubiquitous, between 20% and 50% of patients with early-stage cancer will experience pain,2 and up to 90% of patients with...
ASCO and the Community Oncology Alliance (COA) have released updated standards for its Oncology Medical Home (OMH) certification program, which were initially codified and published in 2021.1 The 2021 systematic literature review focused on the topics of OMH model of care, clinical pathways, and...
Despite data from the latest edition of The Cancer Atlas showing that nearly half of cancer mortality worldwide is attributed to modifiable risk factors, cancer incidence and mortality rates continue to soar.1 Globally, approximately 19 million new cases of cancer, excluding nonmelanoma skin...
July marks a significant transition for many professionals, particularly those beginning structured training programs on July 1. This article is designed to support new and current hematology-oncology fellows and trainees in making the most of their training experience. Although not all suggestions ...
Globally, three in five liver cancer cases may be due to preventable risk factors, and obesity-linked cases of the disease are on the rise, according to findings from The Lancet Commission on hepatocellular carcinoma. The majority of liver cancer cases could be prevented by reducing levels of viral ...
A new clinical guideline from the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) focuses on the use of radiation therapy for adults with World Health Organization (WHO) grade 4 diffuse gliomas, a category that includes some of the most common and most aggressive primary brain tumors. The...
This is Part 3 of Novel Therapies for HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Brain Metastases, a three-part video roundtable series. Scroll down to watch the other videos from this roundtable. In this video, Drs. Carey Anders, Rani Bansal, and Sarah Sammons discuss the treatment of a patient with a history...
In this installment of The ASCO Post’s Living a Full Life series, Guest Editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, spoke with Stephen R. Grobmyer, MD, FACS, about his clinical and research career in oncology, the challenges and rewards of moving to Abu Dhabi and building a state-of-the-art cancer center, and...
The management of metastatic (CRPC) has rapidly accelerated in the past decade, giving oncologists a wider range of tools to work with and patients new opportunities for improving survival and maintaining quality of life. These significant advancements have prompted ASCO to release a guideline...
Despite the significant rise over the past 50 years in the use of evidence-based integrative medicine in conjunction with conventional cancer treatments—up from just 20% in the 1970s to about 80% in 20171—training opportunities in the fundamentals of this emerging field within the specialty of...
FaceAge, a deep learning system, was developed and validated to estimate biological age from photographs of faces. In a study published in The Lancet Digital Health, FaceAge showed the ability to predict short-term outcomes in patients with cancer. The study demonstrated that FaceAge could...
Several medical organizations recently released a joint Clinical Practice Guideline to provide recommendations on opioid conversion in adults with cancer.1 ASCO, together with the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC), American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine,...
Applications are now being accepted for the 2025 Integrative Oncology Scholars Program and Integrative Oncology Fellows Program at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor (https://sites.google.com/view/integrative-oncology-scholars-/home). Launched in 2018, the Integrative Oncology Scholars Program ...
Investigators may have uncovered factors that may impact the quality of cancer care and outcomes among patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, according to a recent study published by Tsilimigras et al in JNCCN–Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Study Methods...
Janet L. Abrahm, MD, FACP, FAAHPM, FASCO, has spent more than half of her oncology career as a palliative care physician. After receiving her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), in 1973, Dr. Abrahm completed her internship and residency at Massachusetts General...
Investigators have found that nearly 50% of patients with advanced cancer may receive potentially aggressive treatment at the expense of supportive care, despite considerable efforts to improve the quality of end-of-life care in the United States, according to a recent study published by Kwon et al ...
I’ve learned a lot about medicine over the years, but one thing I wasn’t taught was how to guide someone through the existential weight of dying. My education centered on diagnosing, curing, or at least managing disease—not on the delicate art of helping people and their loved ones cope with what...
Although national guidelines, including ASCO’s palliative care guideline,1 call for the early integration of palliative and oncology care for patients with advanced cancer, only 36% of those with a very poor prognosis and 18% of those with a poor prognosis receive palliative care services.2 The...
Late relapse of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) may represent a new lymphoma arising from a common precursor cell that is essentially chemotherapy-naive. Treatment with curative intent using a second-line regimen like R-CHOP (rituximab cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, prednisone, and...
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) announced that the organization participated in a 2-day meeting at the Middle East North Africa (MENA)–NCCN Regional Coordinating Center. Background The MENA-NCCN Regional Coordinating Center is supported by the Ministry of National Guard Health...
A new study examining the use of high-cost drugs among patients with colorectal cancer and non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) found those insured through Medicare Advantage received less expensive cancer drugs compared to others on traditional Medicare. The findings were published by Bradley et al...
The Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) has examined the National Cancer Control Plans and reported their findings in a new comprehensive global review published by Romero et al in The Lancet Oncology. The findings will be presented at the Cancer Planners Forum in May 2025 in Geneva,...
Managing cancer pain in patients with substance use disorder presents a unique challenge for oncologists, requiring a balance between effective symptom management and mitigation of the risks of substance misuse. During the 2024 JADPRO Live, Antonia Corrigan, MSN, ANP-C, ACHPN, emphasized the...
In this installment of The ASCO Post’s Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, FACP, spoke with medical oncologist Yüksel Ürün, MD, about his clinical and research career in oncology. Dr. Ürün is Professor of Medicine at the Ankara University School of Medicine in Turkey. After...
In earlier issues of The ASCO Post, we shared unique insights from recipients of the International Development and Education Award (IDEA), whose experiences at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting (ASCO24) had a profound impact on their professional and personal growth. Here are more reflections from...
Just weeks or even days or hours away from death, the majority of conscious terminally ill patients often experience growth and meaning in their lives and the absence of fear through end-of-life dreams and visions, according to research by Christopher W. Kerr, MD, PhD. Dr. Kerr is Chief Executive...
Although significant progress has been made against cancer, especially in the United States, which has seen the overall death rate from cancer fall by 33% over the past 3 decades, translating into averting an estimated 3.8 million deaths from the disease,1 progress worldwide has not been as...
In the October 10, 2024, issue of The ASCO Post, we shared some unique insights from several recipients of the international development and education award (IDEA). As oncologists and cancer researchers from diverse low- and middle-income countries, their experiences at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting ...
Investigators have highlighted a critical connection between heart failure and cancer, demonstrating how shared mechanisms may contribute to the incidence and progression of both diseases, according to a recent scientific statement published by Bloom et al in the Journal of Cardiac Failure....
Implementing the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Geriatric Surgery Verification program may reduce rates of postsurgical mortality and increase the proportion of patients with documentation standards such as advanced care directives, according to two new studies presented by Horattas et al and...
My dad agreed to receive hospice on a technicality. It happened after weeks of trying to get him home oxygen. My brother drove him to the oncologist’s office, and I helped him get into the wheelchair. He did not complain, but just asked me to hold his coffee mug, smiling because I snuck him a...
A retrospective study of AYA patients with cancer enrolled in the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill’s AYA Cancer Program, which aims to address these challenges, were more likely to receive guideline-recommended care, including clinical trial enrollment, fertility counseling, and...
As reported in The Lancet Oncology by Laura A. Dawson, MD, of the University Health Network–Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University of Toronto, and colleagues, the Canadian phase III CCRG HE1 trial showed that the addition of a single fraction of palliative radiotherapy to best supportive care...
A study by Hutchinson et al quantifying the socioeconomic burden of ovarian cancer in 11 countries, including the United States, estimates that nearly $70 billion in socioeconomic losses may be attributable to ovarian cancer. Moreover, health expenditures to cover treatment in the first 2 years...