2019    In November 2019, the Japanese Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (JASCC) became MASCC’s newest affiliate. This affiliation allows for joint membership in both organizations with all membership benefits. MASCC’s affiliate program was designed to strengthen relationships with national associations of supportive care in cancer around the world. Partnering with other organizations helps to promote supportive care at the local level with special attention to each nation’s particular needs and resources, as well as economic and cultural issues. The aim is to create a global network of supportive care organizations that allows for international collaboration, as well as enhancing the experiences of cancer patients worldwide.

2019    Karen Mustian, PhD, MS, MPH, ACSM, FSBM, received this year’s Debra Sivesind Career Award at the 23rd Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Supportive Care, Hospice and Palliative Medicine, held October 18-19, 2019 at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. The Debra Sivesind Career Award recognizes outstanding contributions to palliative care, and Dr. Mustian was recognized for her numerous contributions to symptom management in cancer patients and survivors. Eduardo Bruera, MD, introduced the Award and Dr. Mustian delivered the Award Lecture, “Treatment of Cancer-Related Fatigue in Advanced Patients: What Can We Do Now?”

2019    Our October issue carried the article “MASCC and Social Media, Part I: Why Social Media Matters,” which considered the importance of social media to healthcare organizations, including MASCC. From its origins as a means of social exchange and keeping in touch with friends, social media has rapidly evolved to become a powerful platform for sharing information with customers, clients, and colleagues. In the healthcare sphere, it now provides a major means of disseminating best practices and the latest clinical and research findings and is also rapidly becoming an extension of the patient-provider relationship. MASCC has made a commitment to using social media to advance knowledge of supportive cancer care, connect with professionals and patients alike, and increase its visibility as the prime international and multidisciplinary organization devoted to supportive care in cancer.

2019    The NCI-Supported Clinical Research Training in Cancer Control Program at the University of Rochester provides post-doctoral MD or PhD researchers with knowledge and experience to establish careers as outstanding independent investigators in cancer control and prevention research. For more information, see www.futureresearchers.org. Or contact Program Directors, Drs. Michelle Janelsins and Gary Morrow, or Program Director Kate Kessler, at [email protected].  A description is also listed at Supportive Care Clinical and Research Positions.

2019    Ian Olver, AM, MD, PhD, has been awarded the Tom Reeve Award for Outstanding Contributions to Cancer Care by the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia (COSA). The award, announced in September 2019 by COSA CEO Marie Malica, is the most prestigious national award in Australia in the field of clinical oncology.

2019    MASCC’s Survivorship Study Group invites healthcare professionals involved in the care of cancer patients to share their experiences and perceptions regarding patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in a 10-minute online survey. The Study Group is investigating oncology practitioners' current strategies and experiences in applying PROs in clinical practice, performance measurement, and research. The aims are (1) to explore practitioners’ experiences and perceptions on the use of PROs in routine clinical care at the patient level and (2) to assess the value of PROs as a performance or quality-of-care indicator at the system level. This study has been approved by the Institutional Review Boards of Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Edith Cowan University, Western Australia.
If you are interested in participating, please follow this link for more information and the online survey by July 31, 2020: Patient-Reported Outcomes (PRO) Data Collection in Routine Care: An International Survey of Oncology Practitioners.

2019    The 2019 Annual Cancer Treatment-Related Adverse Events Symposium will be held on Friday, October 25, 2019 and Saturday, October 26, 2019 at the Rockefeller Research Laboratories, 430 East 67th Street, New York, NY. The course is directed by MASCC member Mario E. Lacouture, MD, who is the Director of the Oncodermatology Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

2019    Social media is the process whereby people use online tools and platforms to share content and information. Social media platforms include websites where users share, exchange, discuss, and sometimes create or modify content (in the form of text, images, audio and video) in virtual communities on the Internet.

2019    Presentation slides and select session videos which include speaker slides and audio from our 2019 Annual Meeting in San Francisco are available on the MASCC website. (Member login required)

2019    The 23rd Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Supportive Care, Hospice, and Palliative Medicine will be held October 18-19, 2019 at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, USA. Palliative and supportive cancer care are critical to the delivery of optimal care to cancer patients. Many clinicians are unaware of the need for whole-patient care from symptom management to quality of life beyond the treatment of the primary disease. Caring for the cancer patient in the advanced stages of disease is especially challenging and includes medical, psychosocial, ethical, and spiritual dimensions. The conference will help participants learn how to implement new techniques and treatments in clinical practice to improve patient care and outcomes. (Complimentary registration for September 2019 Board Review Attendees!)

2019    Updates in Hospice and Palliative Medicine and Intensive Physician Board Review, September 24-26, 2019

2019    Don’t miss these joint sessions at upcoming meetings!

2019    MASCC will have an exhibit at the 2019 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the European Nursing Society (EONS), both of which take place September 27th to October 1st in Barcelona, Spain. If you are there, please stop by and say hello at Booth S21 in the Society Village!

2019    MASCC’s Mucositis Study Group (MSG) has announced the latest update of the MASCC/ISOO Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Mucositis Secondary to Cancer Therapy. An editorial by MSG Chair Sharon Elad, DMD, MSc, and seven articles have just been published (July 2019) in a Special Section of Supportive Care in Cancer (SCC). This is the first set of papers generated as part of this guideline update and it represents several types of interventions for oral mucositis: anti-inflammatory agents; photobiomodulation; vitamins, minerals, and nutritional supplements; and protocols categorized as basic oral care.

2019    Frederik K. (Fred) Spijkervet, DDS, PhD, Head of the Department Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands, is the recipient of ISOO’s 2019 Distinguished Service Award, the Society’s highest honor. The award was given in recognition of many years of meritorious service to ISOO dating back to 1993, when Fred served as the Program Chair for the first international meeting of the Society in Amsterdam. He went on to serve as Vice President of ISOO from 1994 to 1995, as President from 1995 to 1997, and as Scientific Program Chair for the 1997, 1998, and 1999 annual meetings. From 2004 to 2011, Fred chaired the Oral Care Study Group and was an active member of the Mucositis Study Group. From 2008 to 2014, he served as a MASCC Board member and, in 2013, was part of the Scientific Program Committee for the 2013 MASCC/ISOO meeting held in Berlin.

2019    At the 2019 MASCC/ISOO Annual Meeting, seven Study Groups recognized high-quality work by junior investigators in their disciplines. The Fatigue Study Group was the first to honor outstanding young investigators with junior faculty and trainee awards as a means of professional recognition and a way to showcase cutting-edge work by up-and-coming researchers. The awards are based on the quality of abstracts submitted to the Annual Meeting. This year, junior investigator awards were conferred by the Study Groups on Fatigue, Geriatrics, Mucositis, Neurological Complications, Pediatrics, Psychosocial Issues, and Survivorship. In addition, the Fatigue Study Group recognized Debra L. Barton, PhD, FAAN, RN, as Distinguished Scientific Laureate.

2019    MASCC has initiated two new awards to recognize outstanding work by a MASCC Study Group and an outstanding Study Group Leader. Projects carried out by our Study Groups result in clinical practice guidelines, position papers, publications, and other products that advance supportive care in cancer. Through these new awards, MASCC recognizes excellent work by its Study Groups and the leaders who drive these efforts. The MASCC Mucositis Study Group was named the 2019 Outstanding Study Group, and Mucositis SG Chair Sharon Elad, DMD, MSc, was named the 2019 Outstanding Study Group Leader.

2019     Cynthia N. Rittenberg Travel Scholarship Award 2019 - Radhika R. Pai, MSc (India)
From among the Travel Scholarship applicants, the nurse applicant with the highest-ranking abstract is awarded the Cynthia N. Rittenberg Travel Scholarship. This year, the award went to Radhika R. Pai, MSc (India) for her abstract titled “Evaluation of an Oral Care Protocol for Chemotherapy- and Radiation Therapy-Induced Oral Complications in Head and Neck Cancer Patients.” Radhika is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Fundamentals of Nursing Manipal College of Nursing in Udupi, India. A member of MASCC and ISOO, Radhika belongs to MASCC Study Groups on Oral Care, Hemostasis, and Palliative Care.

2019    Derek K. Smith, DDS, PhD, is the recipient of MASCC’s 2019 Outstanding Young Investigator Award for his research on the efficacy of gabapentin in reducing neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients receiving primary or adjuvant chemoradiation for head and neck cancer. Derek is Research Assistant Professor of Biostatistics and Oral Maxillofacial Surgery and Assistant Director of Supportive Oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. He is particularly interested in the impact that cancer therapies can have on oral health, and how the healthcare system can address the unique challenges of maintaining good oral health in cancer patients. He is a member of MASCC and ISOO and of the Oral Care Study Group.

2019    Jane Ussher, PhD, of the University of Western Sydney, Australia, is the winner of MASCC’s 2019 Steven M. Grunberg Memorial Award for her research titled “Sexual Issues in Partners of Cancer Patients.” The Steven M. Grunberg Memorial Award is reserved for the author of the highest-ranking abstract submitted to the Annual Meeting and rewards demonstrated excellence in supportive care in cancer. At this year’s Annual Meeting, Jane presented her study of sexual embodiment and subjectivity after cancer across a range of cancer types and stages in partners of people with cancer, across both heterosexual and LGBT relationships.