In the October issue of The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA (TON), we feature a wide variety of articles aimed at helping our readers stay informed on important issues relevant to nurses, navigators, and advanced practice providers as they care for patients with cancer.
This issue begins with an interview with Traci L. Clark, RN, BSN, OCN, PHN, Oncology Nurse, Stanford Cancer Center and Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Bay Area, CA (see here).
“I find it very rewarding to help calm patients’ fears and explain the information in a way that is accurate and beneficial,” she said.
As with every issue, you will also find highlights from recent oncology meetings, where experts discussed results from clinical trials evaluating new treatment approaches for patients with cancer.
At the American Society of Breast Surgeons 22nd Annual Meeting, experts presented data from a study showing that Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act led to significant increases in breast reconstruction surgery among non-Hispanic black women and women with lower income and education levels (see here).
“The continued lack of racial parity in states without expansion suggests that a reduction in Medicaid access will negatively impact the gains achieved and should raise caution in today’s shifting sociopolitical environment,” said Sharon Lum, MD, Chair, Department of Surgery, Loma Linda University Health, and Medical Director, Loma Linda University Breast Health Center, CA, and lead investigator of the study.
In a presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2021 virtual annual meeting, investigators discussed encouraging results from a phase 3 clinical trial that evaluated the safety and efficacy of pembrolizumab after surgery in patients with high-risk, clear-cell renal-cell carcinoma (see here).
“Given the success of pembrolizumab in the KEYNOTE-564 trial, this population may soon have a new standard of care,” said Julie R. Gralow, MD, FACP, FASCO, ASCO Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President, at a premeeting press conference.
In a separate presentation at the meeting, Evan J. Lipson, MD, Associate Professor, Medical Oncology, Melanoma and Cancer Immunology Programs, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, suggested that combination therapy with relatlimab and nivolumab may soon become the new standard of care for previously untreated patients with advanced melanoma (see here).
Additional topics in this issue include safety and efficacy data on novel agents that are being used to improve outcomes in patients with non–small-cell lung cancer (see here) and prostate cancer (see here).
We also provide readers with an overview of recent FDA approvals for a variety of new and existing anticancer drugs.
As always, we hope that you will enjoy this issue of TON, and we invite you to visit www.TheOncologyNurse.com to share your feedback with us. You can also send an e-mail with any questions or comments you may have to info@TheOncologyNurse.com.
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