Behind the Scenes — February 2019

The NCI Rates UNC Lineberger Breast Cancer Program “Exceptional”

by Sharon Bigelow, RN MSN ANP OCN

The UNC Lineberger Breast Cancer Program, a scientific as well as clinical powerhouse, just celebrated its 10th year as an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center Program, and was rated by the NCI as “exceptional.” This rating is based on the program’s broad excellence, including epidemiology and studies of the breast cancer patients across North Carolina, deep scientific explorations of tumor and immune system biology and how it impacts breast cancer behavior, and clinical care available to all.

Katie Reeder-Hayes,
MD, MPH, MBA

The clinicians of this highly multidisciplinary program are all involved in efforts to optimize the care of women with breast cancer using the tools we currently have as well as efforts to create new knowledge through research so that this care will improve in the future. In this article we will highlight the Breast Medical Oncology team. Working with epidemiologists and public health researchers is Katie Reeder-Hayes, MD, MPH, MBA, whose work has identified the extent to which women with breast cancer suffer from the financial burden of cancer care as well as significant deficiencies in access to modern breast cancer therapy, particularly for women of color.

Lisa Carey,
MD, ScM

The physician leader of the UNC Breast Program is Lisa Carey, MD, ScM, who not only has local prominence but also serves as an advisor to the NCI in developing clinical trials designed to improve care for breast cancer patients. She has been working with scientists for years studying the way in which molecular subtypes of breast cancer differ in response to treatment allowing us to better tailor therapies. For example, her recent work suggests that one subtype of HER2-positive breast cancer may be able to be treated with far less chemotherapy than is the norm.

Claire Dees,
MD, ScM

Claire Dees, MD, ScM, is a nationally renowned expert in developing new drugs for cancer patients and the leader of the early drug development group for UNC Lineberger across all tumor types. She works with scientists in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy as well as pharmaceutical companies worldwide to develop clinical trials of novel, often completely untested.

Hyman Muss,
MD

Trevor Jolly,
MD

Another strength of UNC Lineberger is the highly successful and well established focus in geriatric oncology. This increasingly important discipline is led by Hyman Muss, MD, who was one of the first to study the variations in cancer behavior and tolerance of therapy in older patients. Dr. Muss has won countless awards for his work, which has resulted in widespread recognition of the need to specifically examine cancer in older populations. At UNC, he works with Trevor Jolly, MD, a dual-trained and certified geriatrician and oncologist, on both molecular and clinical tools to predict which older patients will not tolerate chemotherapy and need a gentler approach.

The clinical care of patients at UNC Lineberger and the North Carolina Cancer Hospital could not happen without the tireless efforts of a great team, including Nurse Practitioners Corrine Mellin, Liz McMahon, and Deb Mayer, as well as Nurse Navigators Amy Depue, Emily Riddle, Lea McDonnell, and Betsy Blanton. UNC’s reputation for patient-centered care, access and responsiveness is thanks to this team.

Future directions for this remarkable program center on even more efficient and effective multidisciplinary care, and clinical trials that will continue the improvement in survival rates and quality of life for breast cancer patients.

https://unclineberger.org/patientcare/programs/breastcenter

UNC Cancer Network’s
Live Lectures for 2019

by Jon Powell, PhD

The 2019 lecture lineup just keeps getting better and better! We began with a slate of speakers and topics recommended by lecture attendees, presenters, and our advisory board. As we have reached out to the people on our list, they have agreed or recommended someone equally as wonderful.While we are still trying to schedule two speakers for the RN and Allied Health lecture series, the Medical and Surgical Oncology lecture series is completely booked.

Our 2019 schedule includes these great speakers and topics:

RN and Allied Health lectures		Medical and Surgical Oncology lectures
February 13 — Jacob Hill, ND, MS Safety Considerations When Managing Dietary Supplements in Cancer Care		February 27 — Stephan Moll, MD, and Anne W. Beaven, MD Key 2018/2019 Developments in Lymphoma and Thrombosis/Anticoagulation
March 13 — Zev Nakamura, MD Cancer-Related Cognitive Impairment: More Than a Side Effect of Chemotherapy		March 27 — Yuliya Pylayeva-Gupta, PhD Immunological Mechanisms in Pancreatic Cancer
April 10 — Tammy Allred, RN, OCN Preparing Patients for Treatment		April 24 — Raj Pruthi, MD Optimal Care for Bladder Cancer Patients: Current Obstacles and Opportunities for Cystectomy Patients
May 8 — Marc Bjurlin, DO, MSc, FACOS, and Meredith Crabtree, FNP-C Prostate Cancer Screening		May 22 — Wendell G. Yarbrough, MD, MMHC The Role and Importance of HPV Infection in Head and Neck Cancer
June 12 — Katharine Harrell, NP-C Helping Patients with Breast Cancer		June 26 — Lisa Carey, MD Decision-Making in Metastatic Breast Cancer
July 10 — TBD		July 24 — Autumn McRee, MD, Trevor A. Jolly, MBBS, and Emily Ray, MD, MPH Best of ASCO 2019: Breast and Gastrointestinal Cancers
August 14 — Shifali Arora, MD, and Kathleen Ferrell, MPAS, PA-C Helping Patients with Esophageal Cancer		August 28 — Jared Weiss, MD, and Tracy Rose, MD, MPH Best of ASCO 2019: Lung and Genitourinary Cancers
September 11 — TBD		September 25 — Brian Colwell Jensen, MD Cardiotoxicity and New Therapies
October 9 — Sharon M. Bigelow, RN MSN ANP OCN Working with Patients/Families Who Need Extra Help		October 23 — Bhisham Chera, MD Clinical Trial Update in Head and Neck Cancer
November 13 — Marie Malikowski, RN, MHA, CCRP Understanding Treatment Plans and Clinical Trials		November 27 — Paola A. Gehrig, MD Gynecologic Cancer (title subject to change)
December 12 — Melissa Walter, MPH, RDN, LDN Nutrition and the Aging Brain in Cancer Care		December 18 — Andrew Wang, MD New Indications for Radiotherapy

We hope that you find our entire 2019 lineup, as it becomes finalized, as edifying as we believe it will be. Updated PDF Schedules and an always current online calendar can be found on the UNC Cancer Network website.

You can also download a PDF of the UNC Cancer Network’s 2019 Telehealth Schedule.

Recent Additions
to the Learning Portal

by Jon Powell, PhD

Lauren Lux, LCSW
Caring for Adolescents and Young Adults Living with Cancer: Meeting their Unique Medical and Psychosocial Needs
https://learn.unccn.org/online-course-catalog/rn-and-allied-health-courses/“

Adolescents and Young Adults living with cancer have unique medical and psychosocial needs. The recognition of these needs has created a new field of study in practice in the oncology world. As such, many institutions are developing multidisciplinary teams to address AYA needs. However, you don’t need a huge budget or a new program to make an impact with this age group. We establish the age-specific needs of this group and discuss some simple changes to make in your day-to-day practice that will help you meet your AYA patients’ needs.

 

Eliza Park, MD
Understanding and Treating Anxiety & Depression in Patients and Families with Advanced Cancer
https://learn.unccn.org/online-course-catalog/medical-and-surgical-oncology-courses/

Depression and anxiety disorders commonly occur among patients with cancer and their family caregivers. This lecture focuses on the common symptoms and management strategies for depression and anxiety disorders in patients with cancer and their family members.