A new study finds that the racial composition of clinical trials involving radiation therapy does not match that of the U.S. population. Examining trials from the past 23 years, researchers found that roughly 12% of trial participants were Black, which is less than the 13% population composition of ...
In a National Cancer Database analysis reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Champion et al identified patterns in disease characteristics, time to surgery, and overall survival among Hispanic patients of different races and among Hispanic and non-Hispanic women of the same race. Study Details The...
In an observational cohort study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Powell et al found that the use of whole-breast hypofractionated radiotherapy increased among patients with breast cancer with health insurance plans from one national health-care organization after the implementation of a virtual...
The increasing incidence rates of skin cancer in the United States are staggering. It is the most common cancer diagnosed in the country, and current estimates show that about 9,500 Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer every day. Over the course of a year, more than 3 million people are...
ASCO called for new actions to reduce disparities in cancer outcomes affecting racial and ethnic minorities, rural populations, sexual and gender minorities, people without insurance, and other disadvantaged populations. In a policy statement published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO),...
The well-loved Art of Oncology section of the Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO) and its pioneering podcast are both resonating as never before, as cancer specialists are prompted into deeper reflections about the poignant moments that give life meaning by the COVID-19 pandemic. JCO’s Art of...
Global oncology refers to the application of the concepts of global health to cancer and implies an approach to the practice of oncology that acknowledges the reality of limited resources in parts of the world. The Global Oncology Young Investigator Award (YIA) from ASCO and Conquer Cancer, the...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Ziakas et al found that Medicare Part D spending on oncology drugs increased markedly between 2013 and 2017, with spending increasing at a rate markedly greater than that attributed to all other medical care providers. Study Details Medicare Part D...
JCO Oncology Practice has published an article on rural cancer care as part of the State of Cancer Care in America series. “Closing the Rural Cancer Care Gap: Three Institutional Approaches” draws from data presented during the second State of Cancer Care in America live event as well as supporting ...
“In line with the emergence of targeted therapies, molecular biomarker testing in metastatic colorectal cancer has evolved over the past decade,” noted Jeanne Tie, MD, MBChB, FRACP, who acknowledged there is confusion about the best ways to use molecular testing in the clinic. Dr. Tie, who is...
Research published by London et al in JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics found significant decreases nationwide in the number of patients seen for cancer-related care as the COVID-19 pandemic progressed during the first few months of 2020. The most significant decline was seen in encounters related to ...
Jonathan W. Friedberg, MD, MMSc, has been appointed as the next Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO), the flagship journal of ASCO. JCO publishes cutting-edge research on the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cancer and is one of the most highly cited oncology journals...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the “Art of Oncology,” as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Stephanie L. Graff, MD, and colleagues found that patients with breast cancer seen by a physician with training in using an established pathway for genetic counseling and testing referral were more frequently referred for such services vs patients seen...
In an Australian study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Piercey et al found that routine blood tests have little utility in detecting relapse or progression of disease during active surveillance of patients with indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma. As stated by the investigators, “Patients with...
In a single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Watson et al found that screening for and treating detected dental infections prior to initiation of induction chemotherapy for patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) were associated with a significant reduction in ...
In a single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Kouzy et al found that gastrointestinal (GI)-related patient-reported outcomes among those receiving chemoradiation for anal cancer improved vs baseline at 1 week after treatment initiation, were worse vs baseline at 5 weeks, but did...
Although the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has recommended extended-fraction radiation therapy (more than 10 fractions) not be routinely used for palliation of bone metastases,1 a recently published retrospective cohort study using Medicare data for more than 12,000 patients found ...
An analysis of radiation therapy patterns among more than 12,000 Medicare patients treated for bone metastases found that 23.4% received extended-fraction radiation therapy, “wasting both health-care dollars and precious patient time,” according to the investigators.1 One-third of the treating...
A new infographic in the May 2020 print and online issues of JCO Oncology Practice (JCO OP) outlines paths to implementing ASCO’s Patient-Centered Oncology Payment (PCOP) model—an alternative payment model designed to support transformation in cancer care delivery and reimbursement while ensuring...
In an article published in JCO Oncology Practice, David Waterhouse, MD, MPH, of Oncology Hematology Care, Cincinnati, Ohio, and colleagues presented the results of a recent ASCO survey of clinical programs on the early impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performance of oncology clinical...
The global toll of breast cancer on women is staggering. In 2018, nearly two million new breast cancer cases were diagnosed, an increase of more than 20% since 2008,1 and mortality rates have increased by 14%, bringing the annual number of deaths worldwide from the cancer to more than 611,625.2...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Emily H. Castellanos, MD, MPH, and colleagues found that the requirement for Medicare Oncology Care Model (OCM) practices to report biomarker testing of patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has not substantially altered the...
An article recently published in JCO Oncology Practice (JCO OP) written by the ASCO Ethics Committee focused on the causes of burnout in oncology, as well as intervention methods. The article provides recommendations for individuals, organizations, and the Society to address burnout and ensure...
In a retrospective analysis reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Grover et al found that enterocolitis flares occurred in approximately one-quarter of patients with preexisting inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or microscopic colitis who received immune checkpoint inhibitors for the treatment of solid ...
Over the years I have become increasingly proud of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. I believe that ASCO is unique among specialty societies—at least in the various disciplines of oncology and hematology. Our Society is amazingly democratic (ie, with an independent nominating process and...
It has been 5 years since ASCO has been part of a new publication, the last being the Journal of Oncology Practice (JOP). As the ASCO Board and leadership evaluated the publication mix we recognized there was a gap that needed to be filled. The Journal of Clinical Oncology (JCO), now 25 years old, ...
In a single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Goyal et al found that use of the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) self-assessment tool during weekly on-treatment physician visits was associated with reduced symptom severity vs routine symptom management in patients...
Recently, an article and accompanying infographic published in JCO Oncology Practice examined the impact pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) have on cancer care delivery. The article is part of ASCO’s State of Cancer Care in America series, which explores challenges and opportunities in today’s...
A study using data from the Michigan state cancer registry, reported in JCO Oncology Practice by Paniagua Cruz et al, found that a higher proportion of white vs black patients with esophageal cancer were married; that single patients were less likely to receive esophagectomy and chemotherapy; and...
In a single-institution retrospective study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Lynch et al found that routine laboratory surveillance testing had limited value in detecting relapse in patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma in first remission. Study Details The study involved 235 patients at...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Shi et al found that use of higher-than-currently-recommended severity thresholds for symptom alerts for patients receiving outpatient chemotherapy would result in failure to identify and treat many patients requiring clinical intervention for ...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Bickell et al found that providing oncologists with communication skills training did not improve the frequency or quality of goals-of-care discussions for patients with advanced cancer. Study Details In the study, 22 oncologists were randomly assigned...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the Art of Oncology as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
An article by Waterhouse et al in JCO Oncology Practice presented results of a recent ASCO survey of clinical programs exploring the early impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performance of oncology clinical trials. Results highlighted the numerous issues faced by the programs, steps that are...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Todd A. Yezefski, MD, and colleagues found that the cost of first-line systemic therapy for metastatic colorectal cancer was higher in Western Washington state compared with British Columbia and that survival outcomes were similar. A stated by the...
First results from the TERAVOLT (Thoracic cancERs international coVid 19 cOLlaboraTion) registry for thoracic cancers—presented by Marina C. Garassino, MD, at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Virtual Annual Meeting in the COVID-19 and Cancer Session—indicate a high mortality rate ...
ASCO (the Society) and its affiliate organization the Association for Clinical Oncology (the Association) recently announced the results of a survey that tracked the initial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer clinical trials, highlighted a new research initiative to address the data gap on...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Narek Shaverdian, MD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, and colleagues found that most patients undergoing radiation therapy for cancer reported that anticipated adverse effects did not occur or were no worse than expected.1 However, ...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Holmes et al found that a program instituted at the University of Vermont Medical Center was successful in improving venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk assessment, patient education, and rates of prophylaxis use in patients initiating anticancer...
In a meta-analysis reported in JCO Global Oncology, Desai et al found a pooled prevalence of cancer of 2.0% among patients with COVID-19 infection. Key Findings A literature search identified 11 reports providing data on prevalence of cancer in patients with COVID-19 infection. The overall...
Routine use of extended-fraction radiation therapy—defined as more than 10 fractions—for the palliative treatment of bone metastases is considered a low-value intervention by the American Society for Radiation Oncology. In a retrospective cohort study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Gupta et al...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Villano et al found that increased hospital surgical volume was associated with overall improved survival in patients undergoing surgery for retroperitoneal soft-tissue sarcoma. However, increased volume was associated with poorer survival in patients...
A recently published article by Schatz et al offers new clarity around the use of prescription opioids in pain management for people with a diagnosis or history of cancer and chronic pain. The joint publication, which appeared in both JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and...
The ASCO Post is pleased to reproduce installments of the Art of Oncology as published previously in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. These articles focus on the experience of suffering from cancer or of caring for people diagnosed with cancer, and they include narratives, topical essays,...
ASCO has released a new guideline for clinicians and policymakers in resource-constrained settings on treating patients with late-stage colorectal cancer.1 “Around the world, there is a huge variation in resources, and what is available to clinicians may change week to week,” said Mary D....
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Zibelli et al found that patients with cancer readmitted to hospital within 30 days from index admission often made the decision to return to hospital themselves, without input from their care teams. Study Details The study included 33 patients...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Fishman et al found no significant difference in the use of optimal evidence-based anticancer drug regimens in physician offices vs hospital-based outpatient departments. However, the investigators found significantly higher costs of treatment in the...
In the novel Blindness, Portuguese author José Saramago describes an epidemic that quickly and inexorably causes nearly all inhabitants of an unnamed city to lose their sight. The Nobel Laureate writes in long uninterrupted sentences, making the reader experience the fears and anxieties of the...
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Chambers et al found that use of molecular testing across tumor types often varied widely in several countries, sometimes reflecting regional differences in the incidence of cancer types. Study Details The study involved the use of aggregated results of ...