Study Shows BRCA Mutation Screening Needed Despite Family History
October 13th 2015A new study at a single center in Japan found no significant differences in the rate of BRCA mutations between ovarian cancer patients with or without family histories of the mutations and recommends that BRCA1/2 testing be required for all ovarian cancer patients
Experts Offer Guidance on Integrating Palliative Services Into Cancer Care
October 12th 2015Palliative care should be provided with cancer care early in the course of illness for all patients with advanced disease, according to a new guidance statement from ASCO and the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
Incorporating Palliative Care Improved Radiation Treatment for Bone Metastases
October 7th 2015A novel program combining radiation oncology with palliative care in patients with painful bone metastases increased the use of proven treatments while maintaining pain management, decreased palliative radiation use, and decreased hospital length of stay.
Challenges of Rural Cancer Care in the United States
Rural cancer patients often face substantial barriers to receiving optimal treatment, including availability of cancer care providers, distance to services, lack of public transportation, financial barriers, and limited access to clinical trials. However, a number of promising approaches may address some of these challenges.
Should Response to Preoperative Therapy Guide Local Management in Node-Positive Breast Cancer?
September 15th 2015Current data challenge the statement that recommendations for postmastectomy radiotherapy should be based on the highest clinical or pathologic stage. Instead, data suggest that in a majority of patients, the pathologic stage after neoadjuvant chemotherapy carries more prognostic value.
Country Docs With City Technology Can Address Rural Cancer Care Disparities
September 15th 2015As technology has affected every segment of society, we in the oncology community have a responsibility to make every effort to utilize these advances to enable the broadest possible outreach to our patient population in a continual process of quality improvement.
Please! Tell Me How I Can Help You!
September 2nd 2015No matter how much education my staff and I participate in, we will never cover every single possible adverse event that an individual may experience. And in some cases, when a patient can't explain their symptoms, we can be at a loss as to how to help them.