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Showing 701 - 750SIDEBAR: SWOG 9346 Conclusions Debated in Special Post-plenary Discussion
Based on the controversial nature of the SWOG 9346 findings, presented at the 2012 Annual Meeting Plenary Session, ASCO intiated a pilot program at the meeting for a “town hall” type of discussion, where attendees could voice their concerns and questions, and where presenter Maha Hussain, MD,...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions from Your Patients
For now, genomic sequencing seems to have a greater presence in the news than in the clinic. What can physicians tell their patients who ask about genetic testing to identify mutations driving cancer growth? “The real answer is that when you get down to it, genomics is like any other test,”...
A Physician, Who Is Also a Cancer Patient, Talks about Medical Errors
In a whispered but resolute voice, Itzhak Brook, MD, MSc, led off his presentation at the 2012 ASCO Annual Meeting1 by telling the audience his voice is weak because he doesn’t have vocal cords. He spoke with the aid of a tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis. “I have practiced medicine for more than ...
ASCO’s Guideline on Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy for Melanoma
Direct your patients to www.cancer.net/whattoknow so they can learn about ASCO’s recent guideline on sentinel lymph node biopsy for melanoma, including what it means for patients and a list of questions to ask the doctor. In addition, patients can find more information about melanoma at...
ASCO University’s e-Seminars Offer a Stimulating Way to Stay on Top of Trends as Well as Meeting Highlights
Did you miss one of the symposia this year and need to quickly catch up on the highlights in small, digestible portions? No problem. ASCO University’s e-Seminar series now has you covered. Or, is there a new journal article that everyone’s talking about, and you need guidance on how to interpret...
‘Young and Strong’ Program Addresses Multiple Needs of Women in 40s and Younger Diagnosed with Breast Cancer
“Young and Strong” is an exportable model of a program developed at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston to address the significant challenges facing young women with breast cancer. The new model has been designed to “serve young women with breast cancer who are...
SIDEBAR: Don’t Expect Questions: Be Proactive with Younger Patients
It is unrealistic to expect adolescents and young adults with cancer to initiate questions about disease-related or or treatment-related issues that are troubling them, according to Bradley Zebrack, PhD, MSW, MPH, Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor....
Adolescent and Young Adult Patients Report Unmet Needs for Cancer Information and Psychosocial Support Services
In the News focuses on media reports that your patients may have questions about at their next visit. This continuing column will provide summaries of articles in the popular press that may prompt such questions, as well as comments from colleagues in the field. Psychosocial care needs are not...
Being Well Informed Helped Me Cope with Breast Cancer
I had been putting off getting a screening mammogram for a few years. When I finally made an appointment in March 2011 and was told that I needed a follow-up sonogram because the test had picked up a suspicious-looking mass in my right breast, I knew I was in trouble. A biopsy of the tumor showed...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions from Parents
Results of a study finding that exposure to radiation from multiple CT scans in childhood can triple the risk of leukemia and brain tumors may cause some parents to question the overall benefit of CT scans and to directly question physicians. “The three key questions that parents can ask are: (1)...
Genitourinary Cancers Symposium Still Intimate Despite Record Growth
Despite its exponential growth since launching in 2007—from 1,450 attendees then to a record 2,530 last year—the Genitourinary (GU) Cancers Symposium remains an inviting meeting that feels small, accessible, and comfortable. And that’s the perfect blend for networking, said Jeff Michalski, MD,...
Sexual Dysfunction in Female Cancer Survivors Is Prevalent
Although medical experts put the proportion of female survivors facing some form of sexual dysfunction following a cancer diagnosis and treatment at nearly 100%, very few women raise sexual health concerns with their oncologist. In a study of 261 patients with gynecologic or breast cancer published ...
FDA Issues New Safety Alert on Reumofan Plus and Reumofan Plus Premium
In August 21, the FDA issued a new warning to consumers about the potential health risks of two products marketed as natural dietary supplements for treating arthritis, muscle pain, osteoporosis, bone cancer, and other conditions. The products, Reumofan Plus and Reumofan Plus Premium, contain...
Faculty Q&A Discussion: Communicating with Patients
Dr. Armitage: As oncologists, we face many challenges. I think the most difficult is when you say to a patient with a disease everybody expects will be cured, and every patient expects to be cured, “It is not worth trying to do that. It is time to worry about keeping you as well as possible for as ...
Best of ASCO® Meetings Offer Data, Commentary, and Interaction with the Experts
Three Best of ASCO meetings were held over the summer in Chicago, Boston, and San Diego. The faculty distilled the most interesting and immediately applicable data from the 2012 ASCO Annual Meeting, provided personal perspectives, and interacted with attendees for an educational experience that was ...
The Language of Cancer
For more than a year, Don S. Dizon, MD, FACP, has been blogging at ASCO Connection (connection.asco.org) about such diverse topics as cancer survivorship, the redesign of clinical studies based on patients’ molecular characteristics, and the power of laughter. Last May, Dr. Dizon tackled the impact ...
SIDEBAR: Don’t Expect Direct Questions from Patients about Pain
Just asking patients “Is there something else you want to address in the visit,” rather than “Is there anything else you want to address in the visit today,” dramatically reduced patients’ unmet concerns during a primary care visit, according to a 2007 study.1 That learning can be applied to...
Pain Remains Prevalent among Oncology Outpatients, with Odds of Undertreatment Twice as High among Minority Patients
In 1994, a landmark study of pain among oncology outpatients prompted a host of pain management initiatives.1 More than 18 years later, a recent study among more than 2,000 cancer outpatients has found that “one-third of the patients who had pain or used analgesics received inadequate treatment for ...
Despite the Rhetoric, Cancer Care Costs Keep Skyrocketing: Is There a Solution?
Although health-care experts routinely agree that the rising costs of oncology services are untenable, there is disagreement about how to reduce expenditures without harming access and quality of care. At this year’s ASCO Annual Meeting, Thomas J. Smith, MD, FACP, offered some interesting ideas...
The Nuts and Bolts of Getting into an Oncology Fellowship
Oncology continues to be one of the most sought-after specialties. Because of a shortage of oncologists and the accelerating pace of developments in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, oncology has become an increasingly competitive field. Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education...
Integrative Medicine Showing Benefits in Cancer Management
Donald I. Abrams, MD, Chief of Hematology-Oncology at San Francisco General Hospital and Integrative Oncologist at the University of California, San Francisco, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, has been investigating and incorporating integrative medicine approaches in his clinical treatment...
Seeking Solutions to the Dilemmas of Overdiagnosis and Overtreatment
Widespread use of screening technologies has markedly increased early detection rates of cancer, saving countless lives. However, while screening technologies have remarkable sensitivity, their inability to identify which tumors will progress and which will not has created the phenomenon of...
I Am Not a Victim
Six years ago, at age 62, I was feeling in great shape. The year before, I had taken over custody of my 2- and 3-year-old great-grandchildren and decided to change the course of my career from motivational speaker to motivational coach to be home more often with the kids. It was during one of our...
Screening for Ovarian Cancer: A Gynecologic Oncologist’s Perspective
The recent U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Reaffirmation Recommendation Statement concluded that in the population of asymptomatic women without known genetic mutations that increase risk for ovarian cancer, clinicians should not screen for ovarian cancer using transvaginal ultrasound...
SIDEBAR: Expect Questions from Patients
A study finding that a diet high in total carbohydrates can increase the risk of cancer recurrence and mortality doesn’t mean that patients need to totally avoid carbohydrates, any more than previous findings about increased risk from a Western pattern diet means patients can’t eat any red meat....
Teens and Young Adults with Cancer Want a Voice in End-of-life Care
A top the list of concerns of adolescents and young adults with a life-threatening cancer are these two considerations: being able to choose the kind of medical treatment they want (or do not want) and expressing their wishes to family and friends about how they want to be remembered, according to...
Online Prostate Cancer Information Is Written at Reading Levels above Many Americans’ Literacy Skills
Although 61% of Americans are going online to access health information,1 many of them may not understand what they find there, including information about prostate cancer treatment options. According to a new study published in The Journal of Urology,2 as many as 90 million Americans have literacy ...
Social Media Is Helping My Brother Fight Kidney Cancer
My brother, Rick Thomas, is a great guy. I’m not just saying that because he’s my brother. He’s funny, warm, and kind to everyone he meets. He became a commercial airline pilot for American Airlines after flying C-5s in the Air Force for 12 years and has always been a responsible person and a...
Most Patients Do Not Report that Cure Is Highly Unlikely with Chemotherapy for Advanced Cancer
Chemotherapy for metastatic lung or colorectal cancer can provide palliation and modestly prolong life, but is not curative. In a study recently reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Jane C. Weeks, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Insitute, and colleagues found that the majority of patients...
Expert Point of View: Kevin P. Weinfurt, PhD
Our work suggests three specific recommendations for researchers and care providers who are discussing with patients the possibility of enrolling in a phase I clinical trial. First, we should always communicate the likelihood of benefit in terms of the number of participants expected to derive...
SIDEBAR: Ask Patients about Their Smoking Status
“Receiving a cancer diagnosis represents a ‘teachable moment’ for delivering smoking cessation and relapse prevention interventions,” concluded a study in the journal Cancer1 about smoking relapse in patients with thoracic cancer or head and neck cancer. Previous research by two of the study’s...
Focus on the Medical Oncology Association of Southern California
For more than 2 decades, the guiding principle of the Medical Oncology Association of Southern California (MOASC) has been to ensure the continuation of the private practice of medical oncology and to provide the highest quality care to cancer patients. Founded in 1990, MOASC is the largest...
Study Shows New Approach Connecting Smokers to Quit Lines Increases Smoking Cessation Treatment Enrollment
Self-identified smokers directly connected to a tobacco cessation quit line are 13 times more likely to enroll in a treatment program as compared to smokers who are handed a quit line referral card and encouraged to call on their own, according to a new study published online in JAMA Internal...
IBM's Watson Goes Through Basic Training in Oncology
While IBM’s Watson supercomputer may have defeated two former champions on the TV game show Jeopardy! 2 years ago, it is now facing its greatest challenge yet: deciphering huge amounts of scientific data and interpreting clinical information to help oncologists make personalized evidence-based...
Expert Point of View: Nasser H. Hanna, MD
In an accompanying editorial, Nasser H. Hanna, MD, of Indiana University, Indianapolis, suggested that although the question of two chemotherapy drugs vs one in this setting made sense at the time GOIRC 02-2006 was initiated, advances in understanding of the heterogeneity of non–small cell lung...
Expert Point of View: Neal J. Meropol, MD and Johanna C. Bendell, MD
Neal J. Meropol, MD, Chief of Hematology and Oncology at University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center and Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, commented that the quality of the data on ramucirumab is “very high,” and therefore, “we can believe these results.” The magnitude of the benefit,...
Majority of Ovarian Cancer Patients Do Not Receive Recommended Treatment, Study Shows
Women are 30% less likely to die of ovarian cancer if they have guideline-recommended treatment, yet nearly two-thirds of those with the disease do not receive it, often because they are cared for at hospitals that treat a small number of ovarian cancer patients. These are the findings of a study...
Expert Point of View: Lorenzo Cohen, PhD
It is clear from our study, and other studies examining mind-body interventions in patients with cancer, that it is important for patients to consider participating in some kind of program to manage their stress and improve their quality of life. This is particularly true for patients who are...
Sexual Health after Cancer: Communicating with Your Patients
Studies show virtually all cancer survivors will experience some form of sexual dysfunction following a cancer diagnosis and treatment. Yet few cancer survivors seek help for physical problems they may be experiencing, such as vaginal dryness, dyspareunia, chemically induced menopause, reduced...
Expect Questions about Experience and Outcomes
“Patients are becoming more sophisticated in their ability and willingness to interrogate the health-care system about their care,” according to Robert E. Bristow, MD, MBA, lead author of the study finding that many women with ovarian cancer are not receiving care consistent with National...
Symptom Management with Complementary Therapies for Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy
The supportive care of patients with cancer receiving radiotherapy is an important responsibility for the radiation oncologist, and complementary therapies are an integral component of many patients’ treatment strategy.A recent prospective study suggests that 54% of patients with breast cancer...
Tobacco Use in Cancer Patients: Often Overlooked but Critical to Address
One would hope that the importance of treatment for tobacco dependence would be well recognized as a cornerstone of standard care for cancer patients. However, a policy statement released by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) at its recent Annual Meeting revealed some surprising...
Expert Point of View: Charles E. Ray, Jr, MD, PhD
Addressing the studies on cryoablation and irreversible electroporation ablation at a Society of Interventional Radiology press briefing, Charles E. Ray, Jr, MD, PhD, Chief of Interventional Radiology at University of Colorado, told The ASCO Post that these novel approaches to metastases are...
On the Potential for Conflicts of Interest
In a recent issue of The ASCO Post, I counted 14 expert commentaries where the authority who wrote or was interviewed for the piece reported “no potential conflicts of interest.” I wondered how likely that was. We need to be clearer on the meaning of potential conflicts of interest. How often have...
Expect Questions from Your Patients
Patients reading or hearing about the updated draft recommendation statement from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) on the use of medications to reduce risk for primary breast cancer1 may ask if and how it applies to them. To help answer those questions, the information presented...
Attention to Patient Concerns Leads to Customized Treatment and Improved Care, Explains Oncology Nurse Researcher
The Mara Mogensen Flagherty Lecture at this year’s 38th Annual Congress of the Oncology Nursing Society in Washington, DC, focused on the importance of listening to and acknowledging the individual stories of patients with cancer and survivors. Once they are adept at listening, clinicians need to...
Utilizing the Power of Rapid Learning Health-care Systems to Improve Patient Care
Lynn Etheredge’s career in shaping national health-care and social policy spans more than 4 decades and four Presidential administrations. He was the lead analyst in the development of health insurance proposals for Medicare and Medicaid while working in the White House Office of Management and...
Best of ASCO® Meetings Provide Intimate Access to Latest Research
Aiming to facilitate widespread dissemination of practice-changing research, ASCO offers the Best of ASCO® Meetings, which condense the most cutting-edge science and education from the ASCO Annual Meeting into a 2-day program. The smaller size of these meetings, compared to the Annual Meeting,...
Living Without Fear
Even before I had a colonoscopy to determine the cause of abdominal pains I had been having, I instinctively knew that the news wouldn’t be good. A colonoscopy and subsequent pathology report confirmed stage IIIC colorectal cancer. Because I was just 47 years old at the time of my diagnosis and had ...
ASCO's Guideline on Fertility Preservation
Direct your patients to www.cancer.net/whattoknow so they can learn about ASCO’s recent guideline on fertility preservation, including what the recommendations mean for patients and a list of questions to ask the doctor. In addition, patients can view an infographic on ASCO’s recommendations for...
