Karen Mustian Receives the 2019 Debra Sivesind Career Award

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?”

Dr. Mustian is a Dean’s Professor of Oncology in the Department of Surgery at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in Rochester, New York, USA. She is also Co-Director for Wilmot Cancer Institute’s Cancer Control and Supportive Care Research Program, and MPI and Co-Director of the University of Rochester Cancer Center National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program Research Base. With a PhD in exercise psychophysiology, Karen has long been interested in fatigue among cancer patients and in the benefits of exercise and integrative therapies, such as yoga, for combating fatigue and other adverse effects of cancer and its treatment, such as insomnia, immune dysfunction, pain, and nausea. Her research has led to pioneering discoveries in the field of oncology supportive care, and her work in exercise oncology was cited by the American Society of Clinical Oncology as one of the most significant advances in the field of oncology care and research for 2018. Karen’s research makes clear that, since cancer and its treatments can affect many organs (heart, lungs, muscles, bones) as well as the immune system, it’s important to develop safe and effective exercise programs with realistic goals. Her recent research includes investigations of gentle yoga, walking, and strength-training among cancer patients. Karen is a member of MASCC Study Groups on Fatigue, Nutrition & Cachexia, and Survivorship.

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