The March issue of The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA is full of important news and updates for oncology nurses. In this issue, we feature a profile of the Taussig Cancer Center, Cleveland Clinic, OH, where, in my capacity as a nurse practitioner in the Department of Hematologic Oncology and Blood Disorders, my primary role is to diagnose and manage patients with multiple myeloma, amyloidosis, and other hematologic disorders (view here).
The Taussig Cancer Center is the number 1 cancer center in Ohio, and the number 2 hospital in the United States, according to the U.S. News & World Report ranking. This status allows us to attract cases that are difficult to diagnose, including patients with amyloidosis, which is an extremely rare condition. Our amyloidosis partners work with other specialists in the management of amyloidosis to provide comprehensive care.
Other valuable insights that can be gleaned from articles in this issue include the dismal results of a recent study analyzing the use of palliative care services among patients with hematologic malignancies (view here); the potential for taselisib, a phosphoinositide-3-kinase inhibitor, to shrink tumors in patients with estrogen receptor–positive, HER2-negative early breast cancer (view here) , and some noteworthy statistics pertaining to cervical cancer, which occurs in approximately 12,000 women in the United States each year (view here).
We also feature a profile of Laura Mulderrig, BSN, RN, OCN, a nurse in the clinical research unit of Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA, who was presented with the 2017 Oncology Nurse Excellence (ONE) award at the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators 8th Annual Navigation & Survivorship Conference, which took place in Orlando, FL, November 16-19, 2017 (view here).
At the 59th Annual Meeting and Exposition of the American Society of Hematology, David Merola, PharmD candidate, Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy, Shenandoah University, Winchester, VA, presented data from a recent analysis that he and his colleagues conducted of a commercial claims database (view here). The results suggest that oral therapy for multiple myeloma may help decrease the economic burden for patients and healthcare systems.
“The use of novel multiple myeloma drugs has been associated with improved therapeutic outcomes and survival, but the disease continues to pose a significant economic burden. Evaluating the economic implications and outcomes of available treatments is important to improve efficiency of care,” Mr Merola said.
At the same meeting, Mahesh Swaminathan, MD, Leukemia Fellow, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX presented interim data from an ongoing clinical trial demonstrating that the combination of the investigational drug quizartinib plus azacitidine or low-dose cytarabine has substantial activity in patients with myeloid leukemias and FLT3 mutations (view here).
“The treatment was associated with a low rate of early deaths, with a 60-day mortality rate of only 5% in the azacitidine arm and 0% in the low-dose cytarabine arm,” Dr Swaminathan told attendees.
This issue also includes articles on the challenges associated with the adverse side effects of oral cancer drugs (view here), new criteria for inherited prostate cancer genetic testing (view here), and what to say—or not to say—to patients with cancer during their cancer journey, as told from the perspective of Brianne Joseph, LPI, a breast cancer survivor and award-winning author of Punk Azz Cancer, How Dare You! (view here).
As always, we hope you will enjoy this issue of TON and look forward to receiving your feedback. You can contact us via e-mail at info@TheOncologyNurse.com.
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