Under my leadership as President, ASCO initiated the largest quality of cancer care study ever done. Called the National Initiative for Cancer Care Quality (NICCQ), we looked at more than 60 quality measures for stage I to III breast cancer and stage II to III colorectal cancer. We identified areas ...
One highlight of serving as ASCO President is working with the outstanding staff—to name just a few, Executive Vice President Charles M. Balch, MD; Chief Operating Officer Ron Beller, PhD; Jean Colvard; Roseanna Thoman; and all the Department heads. During my Presidency, we undertook some very...
Ten years ago, at ASCO’s Annual Meeting, we were celebrating 40 Years of Quality Cancer Care. We have certainly seen many improvements in cancer care quality since then, especially in more effective agents and patient-centeredness care. When I joined ASCO in 1984, I never imagined that I would be...
As my Presidency gradually fades into the past, it is sobering to reminisce on how exciting it was. ASCO is a great organization with an amazing staff and a solid mission. Chairing the Board meetings was clearly a highlight of my Presidency because of the vast talent and collective wisdom that is...
2014 Ceritinib for the treatment of patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive, metastatic NSCLC with disease progression on or who are intolerant to crizotinib; mercaptopurine as a 20 mg/mL oral suspension for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia as part of a combination...
My Presidential theme was One Community. I think that theme continues to express much of our goal in oncology, which is to make sure that all members of the cancer care team work together—oncologists, nurses, scientists, nutritionists, psychologists, social workers, administrators, and others. I...
Durng my Presidency we completely revamped the way the ASCO Board of Directors works by creating various subcommittees and a much more deliberate strategic planning process. In effect, the Board members took more ownership of ASCO’s agenda, planning the future of the Society rather than dealing...
My year as President of ASCO was one of momentous change, not just for ASCO, but for health care and for cancer biology as well. The theme of my Presidency was Patients, Pathways, and Progress. “Pathways” referred to the molecular pathways that are becoming increasingly important in the targeted...
Serving as ASCO’s President was one of the most exciting years of my professional career. Although that year presented a number of challenges, it also marked a number of accomplishments, including a record number of new ASCO members, which then reached more than 30,000 in 122 countries (today,...
One of the pleasures during my year as President was the ability to bring personal and professional passions and a sense of what really matters into focus for the work of our membership. My Presidential theme, Building Bridges to Conquer Cancer, reflected my particular interest in outreach to...
The last 50 years have been marked by significant advances in cancer research and in more effective therapy for patients. Once viewed as a largely untreatable, fatal disease, today a number of cancers are being converted into chronic diseases that can be managed for long periods of time. The result ...
MAY ASPHO’s 27th Annual MeetingMay 14-17 • Chicago, Illinois For more information: www.aspho.org Oral Oncology: Oncologic Dentistry and Maxillofacial Prosthetics SymposiumMay 15-17 • Houston, TexasFor more information: www.mdanderson.org/conferences 2014 State of the Art Radiation Therapy:...
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) has announced that it has passed the $1 billion mark in research investment, a significant milestone in the cancer research landscape as the Society continues its 65-year pursuit of advancing breakthrough therapies, finding cures, and ensuring access to...
Duquesne University’s newly established biomedical engineering initiative has received a $1.4 million, 5-year grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute to detect, capture and analyze circulating melanoma cells. John Viator, MD, Biomedical Engineering Program Director...
Is pursuing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree a good idea for ambitious surgical oncologists who want to advance their careers? The ASCO Post recently spoke with Martin J. Heslin, MD, MSHA, Chief, Section of Surgical Oncology, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Medical Center, ...
Although cancer research in South America has been largely led by the pharmaceutical industry, a number of independent research groups are active in the region. Peru: GECOPERU and INEN The Peruvian Oncology Clinical Studies Group (Grupo de Estudios Clínicos Oncológicos Peruano, or GECOPERU...
Clinical research is vital for the development and improvement of methods designed to prevent and treat cancer. The majority of clinical trials take place in the developed world through sponsored pharmaceutical research companies.1 The corresponding lack of research in developing countries results...
On April 21, 2014, ramucirumab (Cyramza) was approved for use as a single agent in the treatment of patients with advanced or metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with disease progression on or after prior treatment with fluoropyrimidine- or platinum-containing...
According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, more than 3.5 million cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year, with the incidences of skin cancer outnumbering all cases of breast, colon, lung, and prostate cancers combined. Of the three most common types of skin cancer—basal cell carcinoma, squamous...
ASCO’s State Affiliate Council is composed of the State Society Presidents and/or designated physician Council Representatives as well as the Executive Directors of each state and/or regional oncology society. The Council convened in late February to address the most relevant issues affecting...
The Schwartz Center Rounds program utilizes a case-based format to present information about an identified topic and stimulate discussion among Rounds participants. A physician leader and planning committee choose a case and topic and identify a panel of professional caregivers to share their...
In the fall of 1994, 40-year-old Kenneth B. Schwartz, a health-care lawyer, was diagnosed with lung cancer. Radiation and chemotherapy failed to stop progression of the disease, and 10 months later he died. During his treatment, Mr. Schwartz wrote about the ordeal of coming to grips with the...
New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center has opened the Irving Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, a state-of-the-art facility for comprehensive bone marrow transplant (BMT) care. The new unit features 18 inpatient rooms, a high-tech nurses station for individual patient monitoring, and a...
In the Clinic provides overviews of novel oncology agents, addressing indications, mechanisms, administration recommendations, safety profiles, and other essential information needed for the appropriate clinical use of these drugs. On April 17, 2014, ofatumumab (Arzerra) received regular approval...
Bert Howard O’Neil, MD, has been named the inaugural Joseph W. and Jackie J. Cusick Professor of Oncology and a Professor of Medicine at the Indiana University (IU) School of Medicine, in Indianapolis. He is also the Phase I Director and Director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Program at...
Becky L. DeKay, MBA, became President of the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) at its 40th Annual National Meeting in April. She is Director of Oncology Services at the Feist-Weiller Cancer Center at Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Shreveport, in Louisiana. “I am honored to...
In an effort to reduce cancer health disparities among Asian Americans, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center now offers individual, in-language education and culturally sensitive materials for every Asian American cancer patient. New brochures and 5-minute videos were debuted during the National...
The number of cancer survivors has been steadily increasing in recent years. According to the Ministry of Health National Cancer Registry, in 2010 there were 254,000 cancer survivors in Israel (3.3% of the population) compared with 15,700 (0.4% of the population, P < .005) in 1975.1 Forty years...
An analysis of the first generation of childhood cancer survivors, who are now aging into their fourth and fifth decades, shows further increases in the survivors’ morbidity and mortality risks. “By age 50 years, more than half of survivors have experienced a severe, disabling, or life-threatening...
The information contained in this Clinical Trials Resource Guide includes details of actively recruiting clinical studies of patients with gynecologic and breast cancers. It also includes the Family Caregiver Palliative Care Intervention study, which is investigating interventions to support...
While botanicals are generally perceived as harmless, many reports in literature indicate that misuse of botanicals can be detrimental. Presented below are a few popular herbs in use today, along with their benefits and risks, especially when taken along with other medications. Soy...
Title: Survivorship: Living Well During and After Cancer Author: Barrie Cassileth, MS, PhD Publication Information: Spry Publishing, April 2014, 216 pages, $16.95 This slender-volume survivorship guidebook provides the latest evidence-based information on complementary therapies and is a must-read...
When Barrie R. Cassileth, MS, PhD, began researching complementary medicine and its potential for use in oncology care over 30 years ago, not much was known about the importance of complementary therapies for the well-being of patients with cancer. She chose to conduct her doctoral dissertation...
The American Association for Cancer Research welcomed Carlos L. Arteaga, MD, as President of the Organization for 2014–2015. Dr. Arteaga was inaugurated during the AACR’s Annual Meeting. Dr. Arteaga is Professor of Medicine and Cancer Biology at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, where he...
CancerCare recently announced Patricia J. Goldsmith has been named the organization’s Chief Executive Officer. CancerCare is a national nonprofit organization providing free, professional support services to anyone affected by cancer. The announcement comes as the group celebrates 70 years of...
Genetic screening of cancer can help doctors customize treatments so that patients with melanoma have the best chance of beating it, according to the results of a clinical trial by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. The trial, funded by the National Institutes of...
In January, Eric S. Lander, PhD, Director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and his colleagues published the results from their landmark study,1 which explored the feasibility of creating a comprehensive catalog of cancer genes. The researchers collected and...
In a study reported in JAMA Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery,1 Davies and Welch found that the incidence of thyroid cancer has nearly tripled since 1975. However, the increase appears to represent an “epidemic of diagnosis” and to almost exclusively represent increased diagnosis of papillary...
The neurosurgeon is often the gateway provider when patients present with what on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appears to be a new glioblastoma. Because histology-based diagnosis is a prerequisite for initiating standard therapy with radiation and chemotherapy, the first question that the...
Many nonpharmacologic therapies increase both physical and emotional strength during cancer treatment as well as throughout survivorship. These therapies include the mind-body practices of meditation, self-hypnosis, guided imagery, and breath awareness, touch therapies including massage and...
More than 2 decades ago, Deane L. Wolcott, MD, helped develop comprehensive patient-centered psycho-oncology care in cancer centers across the country. Today, many aspects of that patient-centered care, including psychiatric, dietary, pain management, cancer rehabilitation medicine, survivorship,...
Patients with cancer are extremely interested in discussing the cost of treatment, especially their share of the cost, but some oncologists are still hesitant to enter into these conversations, according to a study reported at the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) 2014 Conference.1 “We...
The ASCO Cancer Research Committee recently convened four disease-specific working groups—in pancreas, breast, lung, and colon cancers—to “consider the design of future clinical trials that would produce results that are clinically meaningful to patients.” An ASCO perspective statement, reported in ...
Most recent advances in the management of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) are in the area of genetics, according to Steven Gore, MD, of Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven. “New genomics research is leading to a better understanding of MDS heterogeneity and disease biology, and may...
In 2012, just 1 year after taking the reins as President of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Ronald A. DePinho, MD, announced his plans to launch the Moon Shots Program, the most ambitious endeavor undertaken by the cancer center to dramatically accelerate the pace of reducing...
The Gairdner Foundation of Canada has named James P. Allison, PhD, for one of its 2014 Canada Gairdner International Awards. Dr. Allison is Chair and Professor of Immunology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. The honor, announced recently by the Gairdner Foundation,...
Douglas Hanahan, PhD, Director of the Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, in Lausanne, Switzerland, was recently honored with the 11th annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research. The award ...
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society recently announced that its Canadian affiliate, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada, has named Shelagh Tippet-Fagyas as its new President. Ms. Tippet-Fagyas will lead the Canadian Society in its efforts to find cures and ensure access to therapies for...
Direct your patients to Cancer.Net, ASCO’s patient information website, to find easy-to-read summaries of studies released on May 14 in advance of this year’s Annual Meeting. In addition, encourage them to listen to a panel discussion and Q&A session about these latest advances in a recording...
The work that we do at the Conquer Cancer Foundation would not be possible without the support of generous donors who share our vision to create a world free from the fear of cancer. Conquer Cancer Foundation supporters are invited to visit the Donor Lounge during the ASCO Annual Meeting, held May...