Survivorship & Supportive Care - Cancer Currents Blog
News on research that affect cancer patients and survivors. Topics include managing treatment side effects, fertility preservation, and cancer’s long-term effects.
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Treating the Whole Person: How Cancer Centers Are Addressing Social NeedsWhile treating people’s health-related social needs has always been a part of health care in one form or other, cancer centers and community cancer clinics increasingly are viewing the people they treat through a social lens and addressing social needs—including transportation, food, and housing—as part of patient care.
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Program Helps Medically Underserved, Minority Cancer Survivors Be More ActiveA program in Texas helped minority and medically underserved cancer survivors get much more physical activity, according to a new study. Participants also reported improved physical functioning and quality of life.
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Spurred by Survivors, Researchers Are Revisiting Cancer Drug DosesWhen it comes to cancer drugs, researchers are moving away from a paradigm called the maximum tolerated dose. Instead, they’re focusing more on identifying doses that produce fewer side effects but are still effective against a person’s cancer.
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New Approach May Help People with Cancer Better Manage Depression, Pain, and FatigueAssessing and offering people with cancer stepped collaborative care may help better manage symptoms of depression, pain, and fatigue than the standard referral to providers for treatment, according to a recent study.
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For People with Inherited Risk of Stomach Cancer, Gastrectomy Has Lasting ConsequencesIn a recent study, more than 90% of people who’d had their stomach surgically removed to prevent cancer experienced a least one chronic complication 2 years out from their surgery. For some, the complications are life altering.
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Virtual Mind–Body Fitness Classes Show Unexpected Benefit in People with CancerIn a clinical trial, people being treated for cancer who participated in virtual mind–body fitness classes were less likely to be hospitalized, and had shorter stays when they were hospitalized, than people who did not take the classes.
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Study Finds Shortcomings in Monitoring Caregivers' Emotional HealthIn a survey of more than 100 US community cancer clinics, only 16% routinely screened informal caregivers of their patients for distress. In contrast, more than 90% regularly screened patients for distress and provided referrals to supportive care services.
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Drinking Alcohol, Often Heavily, Common among People with Cancer and Long-Term SurvivorsMany people being treated for cancer and longer-term cancer survivors reported regularly drinking alcohol—some heavily and often, a new study shows. The study’s leaders said the findings should be “wake-up call” for cancer care providers.
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Cholesterol Drug May Help Protect the Heart during Chemotherapy for LymphomaThe cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) may help reduce the risk of heart failure in people with lymphoma who receive chemotherapy drugs called anthracyclines, results from a clinical trial suggest. Anthracyclines, such as doxorubicin, are used to treat many types of cancer.
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Engaging People with Low-Grade Glioma in Cancer ResearchAn NCI-supported study called OPTIMUM, part of the Cancer Moonshot, was launched to improve the care of people with brain tumors called low-grade glioma in part by bringing them into glioma-related research.
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Three-Drug Regimen Improves Protection against GVHD after Stem Cell TransplantA large clinical trial has shown that in people with blood cancers, a cyclophosphamide-based regimen better protects against graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) after an allogeneic stem cell transplant than the standard regimen.
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Financial Navigation Can Reduce the Financial Toxicity of Cancer CareThe high cost of cancer care can cause added distress and life disruptions for patients as well as their loved ones. Researchers at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center found that a financial navigation program saved patients and their loved ones an average of about $2,500 each.
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Study Finds Disparities in Access to Opioids for Cancer Pain at End of LifeBlack and Hispanic patients nearing the end of life are less likely than White patients to get opioids needed to control their cancer pain, a new study shows. Black patients were also more likely than White patients to undergo urine tests that screen for drugs.
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Pausing Long-Term Breast Cancer Therapy to Become Pregnant Appears to Be SafeMany young women who are diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer want to become pregnant in the future. New research suggests that these women may be able to pause their hormone therapy for up to 2 years as they try to get pregnant without raising the risk of a recurrence in the short term.
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COVID-19 Vaccines Are Safe for People Receiving Cancer Immunotherapy, Study ConfirmsmRNA COVID-19 vaccines did not increase the type, frequency, or severity of immune-related side effects among people taking immune checkpoint inhibitors to treat cancer, a study at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center found. CDC and other medical groups generally recommend that people with cancer receive an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.
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Preventing Chemo Brain? Study Identifies Potential Approach for Common ProblemCisplatin raises levels of a fat molecule called S1P in areas of the brain responsible for memory and information processing, a new study shows. S1P locks onto a protein on the surface of brain cells called S1PR1. In mice given cisplatin, drugs that block S1PR1 prevented cognitive problems.
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For People with Cancer, Are Steroids the Best Treatment for Breathing Problems?Results from a large NCI-funded clinical trial show that steroids were no more effective than a placebo for treating breathing problems in people with advanced cancer. And people treated with steroids were more likely to have serious side effects.
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Sodium Thiosulfate Approved to Reduce Chemo-Related Hearing Loss in Children with CancerThe chemotherapy cisplatin often causes permanent hearing loss. Sodium thiosulfate (Pedmark) is the first treatment approved by FDA that can reduce the risk of hearing loss and the severity of damage to the inner ear in children treated with cisplatin.
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Aided by Community Health Workers, People with Advanced Cancer Need Fewer Hospital VisitsRegular visits and calls from community health workers showed many benefits for those with advanced cancers, from greater use of palliative care to improved quality of life, a new study has shown.
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Meeting Cancer Survivors' Psychosocial Health Needs: A Conversation with Dr. Patricia GanzAbout 25% of cancer survivors have persistent anxiety, depression, or other psychological and social (psychosocial) distress. In this interview, Dr. Patricia Ganz discusses psychosocial distress and the challenges and opportunities in this area.