All News
Support crumbles for community cancer clinics
August 9th 2010There was a time when a cancer diagnosis meant long commutes for patients in small communities and rural America. The kind of care they needed was available only at tertiary medical centers, typically in metropolitan areas. An expanded network of community cancer clinics changed that, providing convenience and comfort for many thousands of patients. A few years ago those centers were treating four out of five U.S. cancer patients. But now this net of care providers is collapsing under the weight of falling Medicare reimbursement.
Chronic ITP Important Safety Information
August 6th 2010Nplate® is indicated for the treatment of thrombocytopenia in patients with chronic immune (idiopathic) thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) who have had an insufficient response to corticosteroids, immunoglobulins or splenectomy. Nplate® should be used only in patients with ITP whose degree of thrombocytopenia and clinical condition increases the risk for bleeding. Nplate® should not be used in an attempt to normalize platelet counts.
Waging the deadliest battle: Against both cancer and Candida
August 5th 2010As more doctors turn to fluconazole for empirical antifungal therapy, some of the weakest patients--those with hematological malignancies and neutropenia--are most likely to pay the price, succumbing to resistant microorganisms.
Nora Janjan, MD, MPSA, MBA, Editor of Practice & Policy
August 5th 2010We are pleased to announce that internationally regarded radiation oncologist, Nora Janjan, MD, Editor-in-Chief of ONCOLOGY, will parlay her policy expertise and serve as Editor for the journal’s new Practice & Policy department set to launch in the September edition.
Healthcare reform, unveiled, finally
July 30th 2010Four months after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared “We have to pass the bill so you can find out what’s in it,” a congressional panel has released the first chart illustrating the 2,801 page health care law President Obama signed into law in March. Check out the video…
Perspective: How will healthcare reform affect cancer care?
July 29th 2010In this video interview, Oncology board member and CancerNetwork contributing editor, Derek Raghavan, MD, PhD, Institute Chair, Taussig Cancer Institute gives his opinion on how the changing landscape of the American healthcare system will affect cancer care.
ACCC releases findings of “Cancer Care Trends in Community Cancer Centers” survey
July 28th 2010This year’s “Cancer Trends” survey provides insight into ambulatory cancer care, effects of the recession, and organizational strategies that may help providers adapt to the changes in the healthcare marketplace.
Nanoparticles reveal then kill cancers…maybe
July 27th 2010Go back to the beginning of MRI, in the early and mid-1980s, and you’ll find an almost rabid adoption of the modality, despite scant evidence of its clinical value. MRI has since done much to gain the trust of the medical community, opening a diagnostic cornucopia in the process. But the future has to bring more if MR is going to extend this legacy. Researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center are working on it.
Abigail Alliance Responds to New York Times Editorial on FDA’s Avastin Decision
July 26th 2010This is decision time at FDA. Since the agency gave accelerated approval for Avastin in first-line treatment of metastatic breast, two follow-up studies “failed to confirm the magnitude” of the benefits seen in that first study of Avastin. Consequently, ODAC voted 12 to 1, urging FDA to reverse its approval of Avastin in this indication.
EMRs are the future: What is "Meaningful Use"?
July 23rd 2010Most busy oncologists will never have time or patience to sift through the 864-page final rule CMS released Tuesday describing how health care providers can demonstrate "meaningful use" of electronic health records to qualify for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments under the 2009 federal stimulus package.
ONCOLOGY Current Issue: August 2010 Vol 24 No 9
July 23rd 2010The journal ONCOLOGY: Perspectives on Best Practices is a peer-reviewed open access reviews journal that focuses on practical treatment issues. Reviews are accompanied by insightful commentaries from oncologists working in a variety of settings.
Osteoporosis, Fractures, and Risk of Falls
July 16th 2010Osteoporosis in elderly cancer patients is an increasing problem, yet it remains under-recognized and under-managed. We commend Dr. Balducci for writing a comprehensive review of the bone complications associated with cancer and its treatment in the elderly.
Quantitation of Individual Risk for Osteoporotic Fracture
July 16th 2010Dr. Balducci has presented a timely and useful overview of bone health in elderly patients undergoing cancer treatment. This topic has important implications, not only within geriatric oncology but also throughout the entire age spectrum. Dr. Balducci’s focus on the elderly population is especially relevant, as this group is at particularly high risk for bone complications over the course of cancer therapy. In his review, Dr. Balducci provides an introduction to the physiology of bone reabsorption and formation, and discusses risk factors for the interruptions in usual physiologic homestasis that lead to osteoporosis.
Bone Complications of Cancer Treatment in the Elderly
July 15th 2010Osteopenia and osteoporosis are increasingly common in cancer patients, owing to the aging of the population and to new forms of cancer treatment. Androgen and estrogen deprivation, as well as some forms of cytotoxic chemotherapy, may lead to osteopenia and osteoporosis. Patients at risk for osteoporosis include those treated with aromatase inhibitors and with androgen deprivation for more than 1 year. In addition, all patients 65 years of age and older are at risk of osteoporosis when treated with cytotoxic agents, and so should be screened for bone loss. Several treatments have been effective in the prevention and management of osteoporosis. In patients at risk for this complication, it is recommended to obtain a bone density evaluation and to start appropriate treatment. This may include calcium and vitamin D supplementation for mild forms of osteopenia, and bisphosphonate therapy or denosumab (Prolia) for more advanced osteopenia and osteoporosis.
Cancer survivors require quality care long after active phase of treatment
July 14th 2010Th e cancer survivor population in the U.S. is nearing 14 million and is growing at a rate of about 10% each year. Unfortunately, cancer patients who have completed treatment do not always have access to comprehensive, follow-up care.
CBR gene increases risk of cardiomyopathy in pts receiving lower-dose anthracyclines
July 13th 2010It is well known that exposure to chemotherapy or radiation therapy can result in long-term complications for childhood cancer survivors. What is less certain is why some children have to contend with these complications while others do not. Researchers at the City of Hope Medical Center in Duarte, Calif., are one step closer to fitting another piece in the survivorship puzzle: They hypothesized that there is some inherent genetic susceptibility that raises this risk.
