In the United States, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. One in eight women will develop invasive disease in their lifetime with approximately 270,00 new cases diagnosed in the United States in 2019. Caucasian women have the highest incidence rate, whereas African American women are most likely to die from the disease. The five-year survival rate is 91%, with an estimated 3.8 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States.
Current events have given us an opportunity, and sometimes even a necessity, to rethink our well-being approaches. But developing a self-care plan doesn’t have to be overwhelming when you use a familiar method like the American Nurses Association’s nursing process.
Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers treated with radiotherapy (RT). Conventional RT for low-risk patients usually involves 40–45 treatments given over eight or nine weeks. Several studies suggest that hypofractionated RT—fewer treatments but with a higher dose per treatment—may produce a similar survival benefit. When two treatments have similar survival outcomes, the decision process looks at symptom profiles, quality of life, and cost.
Surgical treatment for breast, gynecologic, prostate, lymphoma, melanoma, or head and neck cancers puts patients at risk for developing secondary lymphedema at any point in the remainder of their life. Studies show that as many as 10%–40% of patients with breast cancer may experience breast cancer–related lymphedema.
Supporting oncology nurses in administering cancer treatments and nurse scientists in conducting research during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic were priority topics for the ONS Board of Directors’ August 25, 2020, meeting by conference call. After approving its board goals for 2020–2021, the ONS Board made the following decisions that you should be aware of as an ONS member and practicing oncology nurse.
I was born in India but came to the United States of America when I was 16 years old to be with the rest of my family. Having been an American citizen for 20 years, I have called this country home for most of my life. However, I still feel like an outsider and the workplace is no exception.
The revolutionary declaration written 244 years ago, proclaiming that “all men are created equal,” maintains that a true democracy must be based on an individual’s right to vote and the freedom to exercise that power at the ballot box. Since 1998, women voters have embodied that concept, achieving a majority vote with higher rates than men. Of registered women voters, 55% went to the polls in 2018, compared to only 51% of registered men. Yet today women account for only 23.2% of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives and 26% of the U.S. Senate.
Radiation therapy (RT) has been used as a safe and effective treatment option for patients with cancer for more than a century. Like any cancer therapy, it does carry risks and side effects, but RT has improved drastically over the past 20 years and has even been shown to enhance the effectiveness of immunotherapy.
Included in the treatment plan for approximately 50% of all patients with cancer, radiotherapy (RT) is a significant component of cancer care. RT is a technology-driven oncology modality, which means it has continually evolved since being introduced in cancer care in the early 20th century.
On October 2, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab for the first-line treatment of adults with malignant pleural mesothelioma that cannot be removed by surgery. This is the first drug regimen approved for mesothelioma in 16 years and the second FDA-approved systemic therapy for mesothelioma.