Clinical practice guidelines are an essential tool for physicians, providing them with the best available evidence to identify and develop treatment recommendations for specific areas of cancer care. Developed with rigorous methodology, these guidelines can be used by nurses, other cancer health professionals, patients, and policymakers to improve care for cancer patients. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is the world's leading professional organization representing physicians who care for people with cancer. ASCO membership is comprised of clinical oncologists from all oncology disciplines and subspecialties, including medical oncology, therapeutic radiology, surgical oncology, pediatric oncology, gynecological oncology, urological oncology, and hematology; physicians and health professionals participate in programs approved oncology training, oncology nurses and other health professionals with a predominant interest in oncology.
To help doctors provide their patients with the best possible care, ASCO and the American Society of Hematology (ASH) developed evidence-based recommendations for the use of epoetin (Epogen, Procrit) or darbepoetin (Aranesp) for chemotherapy-related anemia. Additionally, ASCO developed evidence-based recommendations on the usefulness of laboratory tests (called trials) to determine if a cancer might be resistant or sensitive to a specific chemotherapy treatment before it is offered to a patient. In order to ensure that the best possible care is provided to cancer patients, ASCO joined the Choosing Wisely campaign and created a subcommittee to develop a list of items supported by available evidence in oncology. This list was reviewed and finalized by the Cancer Care Value Task Force and eventually approved by the ASCO Board of Directors.
The final list of the Top Five in Oncology was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) is a professional association representing 100,000 nurses and is the professional home of more than 35,000 members. ONS Guidelines provide nurses and other healthcare professionals with information about best practices in cancer care. This podcast looks at the ONS Guidelines, the process by which they were developed, and how they will influence the practice of nurses and physicians across the cancer community.
