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Early and regular integration of palliative care (PC) improves patient and caregiver outcomes in symptom management, quality of life, psychosocial health, communication, shared decision-making, overall satisfaction—and even survival. Health systems also benefit through reduced emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and intensive care stays; increased completion of advanced directives; and improved quality of end-of-life care. Both the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS’s) Oncology Care Model and many oncology organizations, including ONS, support the approach for patients with cancer.

The preliminary outcomes for performance in the first year of the Oncology Care Model (OCM) have shown modest but interesting results for the value-based payment model. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS’s) year-one evaluation examined the initial impact of the new payment model on practice in terms of outcomes related to total cost of care per practice, unplanned hospital and emergency department (ED) visits, hospital visits, and patient-reported satisfaction with care for six-month episodes of chemotherapy for beneficiaries from July 1, 2016–June 30, 2017.

Police officers wear body armor and construction workers wear hard hats. Why? Because these professions carry inherent dangers in the line of duty­—And oncology nursing does too. Statistically, healthcare workers face more workplace-related dangers than both law enforcement and construction, yet attention to safety and personal protection isn’t always a central focus. This can be especially true in cancer care, where nurses are required to administer hazardous drugs (HDs) and handle dangerous medications on a daily basis. Although safety recommendations exist, few enforceable standards are protecting nurses handling HDs. 

In May 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave accelerated approval for selpercatinib (Retevmo®) to treat RET-altered non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) or thyroid cancer based on overall response rate and duration of response. Selpercatinib fights cancer by impeding RET protein activity. The determining clinical trial results demonstrated that it reduced tumor size in more than 50% of patients and was associated with fewer adverse reactions than other drugs that block the RET protein.

Pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and hyaluronidase-zzxf subcutaneous injection (PhesgoTM) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in June 2020 for patients with advanced HER2-positive breast cancer. The drug components are the same as those in FDA-approved IV version, and study results showed comparable safety and efficacy to the IV counterparts. The new administration route allows eligible patients to bypass infusion centers or even receive the therapy at home.