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Showing 251 - 300Global Responses to COVID-19 Pandemic–Related Disruptions in Cancer Care
COVID-19 pandemic–related disruptions in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and research have varied worldwide and so have the responses to those disruptions. During the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) 2021 International Conference on Surgical Cancer Care, members of the Global Forum of Cancer...
Medical Oncologist Gouri Shankar Bhattacharyya, MD, FRCP, Dies of COVID-19–Related Complications
The members of the oncology community who spend time and energy addressing the growing global cancer burden in low- and middle-income countries have a kind of selfless dedication beyond the scope of the profession itself. One such medical oncologist was Gouri Shankar Bhattacharyya, MD, FRCP, a...
Study Finds Need to Improve Knowledge About Palliative Care Among U.S. Adults
The use of palliative care in hospitals in the United States has steadily risen over the past decade, with almost universal access to services in large hospitals and academic medical centers. Despite this increased access and recommendations from ASCO that all patients with advanced cancer receive...
Lay Health Worker–Led Intervention May Improve Care for Low-Income and Minority Patients With Cancer
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Manali I. Patel, MD, MPH, and colleagues found that a lay health worker–led intervention was associated with improved documentation of goals of care, increased clinical trial participation, and increased use of palliative care in a population of...
The Daughter of a Fighter Pilot Becomes a Leader in Compassionate Cancer Care
Jamie H. Von Roenn, MD, FASCO, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago as the middle child of three girls. She was, by her own account, extremely shy by nature. Her mother was a graduate of the University of Chicago, but her father’s college education was preempted by his service as a fighter pilot in...
A Doctor’s Daughter Becomes a Pioneer in Cancer Survivorship
Although quality of life has been an implicit medical outcome since the time of Hippocrates, integrating the explicit effort to assess the effects of cancer treatment on the patient’s quality—and not quantity—of life was spearheaded by dedicated pioneers. One such trailblazer is Patricia A. Ganz,...
Balancing a Reverence for Life With a Belief That Patients Have a Right to a Dignified Death
The U.S. right-to-die movement took root in the mid-1970s, when Derek Humphry helped his wife, who was dying of breast cancer, take her own life. Five years later, Mr. Humphry founded the Hemlock Society, the first right-to-die organization in the United States,1 and set off a firestorm of...
Celebrating 50 Years of Cancer Progress: The International View
Although the National Cancer Act of 1971 has resulted in tremendous advances in cancer research, which have led to sharp declines in cancer mortality in the United States—from 1991 to 2018, there has been a 31% decrease in overall cancer death rates—and more than 17 million cancer survivors,1 much...
ASCO Issues Guideline on Dyspnea in Advanced Cancer
ASCO has issued a new guideline on the clinical management of dyspnea in adult patients with advanced cancer.1 Dyspnea—or breathlessness—is a common and distressing symptom affecting upward of 70% of patients with advanced cancer.2 “Dyspnea is a highly prevalent symptom, particularly when people...
ASCO Honors 2021 Special Awards Recipients
Researchers, patient advocates, and global oncology leaders who have worked to reshape cancer care around the world are among the recipients of ASCO’s Special Awards—the Society’s highest honors—and the Women Who Conquer Cancer Mentorship Awards from Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation. “The...
Drive, Curiosity, and a Love of Science: One Nurse’s Road to a Leadership Role in Oncology
For this installment of the Living a Full Life series, guest editor Jame Abraham, MD, spoke with Deborah Watkins Bruner, RN, PhD, FAAN, noted for her work in patient-reported outcomes, symptom management, and comparative effectiveness of radiotherapy modalities. Her current research is focused on...
Machine Learning–Based Algorithm May Predict Short-Term Mortality in Patients With Cancer and Prompt Serious Illness Conversations
Although most patients with terminal cancer, 87%, have end-of-life conversations with clinicians about their goals and preferences for care, on average, these discussions happen just 1 month before death and most often occur in acute care settings with clinicians who are not their treating...
Pembrolizumab as Long-Term Treatment Option in Relapsed or Refractory Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma
For patients with relapsed or refractory classic Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), salvage chemotherapy followed by autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) is the standard of care and can induce long-term remissions in at least 60% of patients.1,2 Patients with progression of disease after...
Fostering a Global Community of Early-Career Oncologists, Virtually
In a typical year, the new participants in ASCO and Conquer Cancer’s International Development and Education Awards (IDEA) and International Development and Education Awards–Palliative Care (IDEA-PC) program would arrive at the McCormick Place Convention Center just ahead of the ASCO Annual...
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Opens New State-of-the-Art Location
Dana-Farber Cancer Instituterecently announced a major expansion with the opening of a hospital facility in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, to provide increased cancer care and outpatient services for adult patients in the region. The new 140,000–square foot, state-of-art outpatient facility is...
A Sense of Duty Shapes the Career of Medical Oncologist Aparna Parikh, MD
By way of her family lineage, Aparna Parikh, MD, seemed destined for a career in medicine. “Both of my parents are physicians, as well as my maternal grandfather. I have two other siblings, all of whom are in the medical field. Medicine has always been part of my life since childhood. My parents...
Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: Current Status and Future Directions
Although head and neck cancers include multiple histologies and primary sites, squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) originating in the oropharynx, oral cavity, larynx, or hypopharynx are the most common. Today, we recognize several different types of head and neck diseases, primarily those that are human ...
Expert Panel–Endorsed Quality Measures for End-of-Life Care for Children With Cancer
There is currently no consensus on what quality end-of-life care for children with cancer looks like, or how to measure and deliver it; however, investigators recently assembled an expert panel to help fill this void. In a study published by Emily Johnston, MD, MS, and colleagues in the journal...
Oncologists’ Views on Challenges in Opioid Prescribing for Patients With Cancer-Related Pain
In an interview study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Yael Schenker, MD, MAS, and colleagues identified challenges and measures for improvement cited by oncologists in the safe and effective prescribing of opioids for their patients with cancer-related pain. Study Details The investigators...
Cancer Care in Sudan During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Sudan is one of Africa’s largest countries, rich in underutilized natural resources but rife with conflicts and civil wars that have been ongoing since it gained its independence in 1956. These problems have reflected negatively on the health-care system. Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, is a busy...
Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: Current Status and Future Directions
Although head and neck cancers include multiple histologies and primary sites, squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) originating in the oropharynx, oral cavity, larynx, or hypopharynx are the most common. Today, we recognize different types of head and neck cancers, primarily those that are human...
Cardiovascular Concerns With the Use of VEGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors
Tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) have proved to be effective drugs in the treatment of many solid tumors. However, their clinical benefit may come at the cost of cardiovascular toxicity if clinicians are not vigilant and proactive. During...
Yoga in Oncologic Care: An Evidence-Based Treatment to Improve Outcomes
The ASCO Post’s Integrative Oncology series is intended to facilitate the availability of evidence-based information on integrative and complementary therapies sometimes used by patients with cancer. Increasingly, patients with cancer desire nonpharmacologic strategies for managing their...
Second-Line FOLFOX vs Active Symptom Control in Advanced Biliary Tract Cancer
In the phase III ABC-06 trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Angela Lamarca, PhD, and colleagues found that second-line FOLFOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil [5-FU], and oxaliplatin) produced a statistically significant improvement in median overall survival vs active symptom control in patients with...
End-of-Life Care Remains Aggressive for Patients With Ovarian Cancer
Patients with ovarian cancer frequently receive aggressive end-of-life care despite industry guidelines that emphasize quality of life for those with advanced disease, according to a recent study published by Mullins et al in the journal Cancer. In fact, by 2016, intensive care unit (ICU) stays and ...
Inpatient Radiation Oncology Consult Model for Metastatic Cancer to Reduce Hospital Length of Stay
In a single-institution study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Xu et al found that implementation of a novel inpatient radiation oncology consult service was associated with a significant increase in consults involving metastatic disease specialists, as well as a reduction in hospital length of...
Cancer Control in Egypt: Investing in Health
Egypt is a country of 1,010,408 km2 located on the northeast corner of Africa with a population exceeding 100 million. In 2018, there were about 134,632 new cancer cases and 89,042 cancer-related deaths in Egypt. Liver and breast cancers are the most common tumors in terms of incidence and...
Roswell Park, Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation Team Up to Fight Cancer in Native and Rural Communities
Roswell Park comprehensive Cancer Center and the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation announced a $3.3 million program to address the cancer burden in rural areas and Native Nations across New York State, with an emphasis on the Western New York region. The grant from the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation ...
New Global Breast Cancer Initiative Highlights Renewed Commitment to Improve Survival
A major new collaborative effort, the Global Breast Cancer Initiative, was introduced by the World Health Organization (WHO), with the objective of reducing global breast cancer mortality by 2.5% per year until 2040, thereby averting an estimated 2.5 million deaths. In recognition of International ...
Trading One Disease for Another: Patients With Chronic Graft-vs-Host Disease May Face Lifelong Complications
The field of allogeneic stem cell transplantation continues to improve survival for patients with previously incurable blood cancers. However, up to 50% of patients who undergo transplantation with donor cells will develop chronic graft-vs-host disease, a potentially deadly condition that can also...
Understanding Patients’ Needs and Preferences: Cancer Care Stakeholders Explore Barriers and Best Practices
The keynote speaker did not mince words. “I tell everyone, do not use the term age-appropriate therapy,” said Jan White, a cancer survivor and patient advocate who described her own experience with stage IV non-Hodgkin lymphoma. “Patients with cancer,” she said, “are more than their age, gender,...
Role of Twitter in Identifying Barriers to Care Among Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer
Information shared by women with metastatic breast cancer on social media platforms like Twitter may be a timely source of data for policymakers hoping to improve care and outcomes for these patients, according to a study published by Shimkhada et al in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. Role of...
Variation in Postoperative Mortality and Complications After Cancer Surgery Between High- vs Low- and Middle-Income Countries
In a prospective cohort study reported in The Lancet, Knight et al found that 30-day mortality after surgery for colorectal and gastric cancers was higher in low- and middle-income countries vs high-income countries (LMICs), with the difference only partly accounted for by patient or disease...
Cancer-Related Suicide Has Declined in the United States Over the Past 2 Decades
Despite increases in overall suicide rates in the United States during the past 2 decades, cancer-related suicides declined by 2.8% per year in the same time period, according to a new study published by Han et al in JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The study found that the largest...
Effect of COVID-19 Infection on Cancer Management
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Wu et al found that almost two-thirds of patients undergoing active cancer management who were diagnosed with COVID-19 over a 4-month period in 2020 had significant delays in planned management. Study Details The retrospective study involved data on...
Lena E. Winestone, MD, MSHP, on Health-Care Disparities in Hematologic Cancers: Real-World Data
Lena E. Winestone, MD, MSHP, of the University of California, San Francisco and Benioff Children’s Hospital, reviews different aspects of bias in treatment delivery, including patient selection for clinical trials; racial and ethnic disparities in survival for indolent non-Hodgkin diffuse large...
Integrated Palliative and Oncology Care for Patients Receiving Treatment for AML
In a study reported in JAMA Oncology, Areej El-Jawahri, MD, and colleagues found that integrated palliative and oncology care was associated with better quality of life vs usual care among patients receiving treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The investigators stated, “Patients with AML...
Reducing Disparities in Cancer Care for Sexual and Gender Minority Patients
Although efforts have been made by various medical societies, including ASCO, over the past decade to address the needs of sexual and gender minorities in the cancer care setting, research shows that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) patients continue to face...
ASH Recognizes Choosing Wisely Champions at Annual Meeting & Exposition
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) recognized three Choosing Wisely Champions, practitioners working to tackle overuse of hematology tests and treatments, at the all-virtual 2020 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition. Choosing Wisely, a program of the ABIM Foundation and Consumer Reports, aims...
ASH Registry: Treasure Trove of Data on COVID-19 and Hematologic Malignancies
The ASH Research Collaborative COVID-19 Registry for Hematology provides up-to-date information on outcomes and the course of illness for a group of patients with hematologic malignancies and COVID-19.1 In general, registry data showed that hematologic malignancies increase the risk of severity of...
Cancer Survivor Offers Roadmap for Managing the Turmoil of Diagnosis and Treatment
Although the field of psychosocial oncology had its roots in the 1970s, it wasn’t until 2007 that the Institute of Medicine acted on the growing data describing the impact of emotional well-being and physical recovery on quality of life, establishing guideline standards requiring that the...
Reducing the Risk of Lymphedema in Patients With Cancer
Although the exact incidence of treatment-related lymphedema among cancer survivors is unknown—most likely due to its prolonged latency period—it can be a lifelong chronic side effect that negatively impacts survivors’ quality of life. Although the condition is often linked to treatment for breast...
Potential Impact of State Government Crisis Standards-of-Care Guidelines on Resource Allocation for Patients With Cancer
In a study reported in JAMA Oncology, Hantel et al found that among U.S. states with crisis standards-of-care guidelines, 55% deprioritized some patients with cancer in resource allocation and 26% included cancer-related categorical exclusions. As stated by the investigators, “State crisis...
Geriatric Assessment: Vital Element in Individualizing Care for Older Patients With Cancer
Caring for older adults with cancer is the purview of every oncologist. Over the next 30 years, the older adult population (65 years and older) will represent the fastest-growing segment of the world population. Globally, the number of persons 80 years and older is expected to triple from 143...
Living Well Before We Die
Editor’s Note: The following essay was first published in 2011. It is being reprinted here with permission from the author and publisher. In 2020, the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) now includes more than 5,000 members; the annual meeting convenes more than 3,200...
ASH 2020: Vital Information on Patients With COVID-19 and Hematologic Malignancies Provided by ASH Research Collaborative Data Hub
The ASH Research Collaborative COVID-19 Registry for Hematology provides up-to-date information on outcomes and the course of illness for a group of patients with hematologic malignancies and COVID-19. In general, registry data showed that hematologic malignancies increase the risk of severity of...
End-of-Life Care Among Commercially Insured Women Younger Than 65 With Metastatic Breast Cancer
In a study reported in JCO Oncology Practice, Ferrario et al found a sizable increase in end-of-life intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and a small but significant increase in emergency department visits over time among commercially insured women younger than age 65 with metastatic breast cancer...
ELNEC Project Reaches Historic Milestone in End-of-Life Care
The End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) project is ending 2020 by surpassing a goal established 20 years ago, reporting more than 1 million nurses and other professionals trained using the ELNEC curriculum. Administered through a partnership between the American Association of Colleges ...
What Is ‘Quality Oncology Care’ During the COVID-19 Pandemic?
My patient with metastatic colon cancer was sitting across from me after being absent for several months. His cancer had been under excellent control on chemotherapy, but now he was having worse pain and shortness of breath. Despite our calls, he had not kept his appointments. We were 6 feet apart, ...
Stereotactic Radiosurgery May Delay Cognitive Deterioration vs Whole-Brain Radiotherapy for Multiple Brain Metastases
Stereotactic radiosurgery appears to be a new standard of care for patients with four or more nonmelanoma brain metastases, perhaps replacing whole-brain radiotherapy in this setting, according to a potentially practice-changing phase III study presented at the 2020 American Society for Radiation...
