Although 74%–84% of patients with breast cancer who undergo mastectomies are satisfied with their bodies and outcomes after electing to have a flat closure, 20%–35% say that they felt unsupported by their cancer care team during the process. Patients report feeling marginalized or stigmatized, not being told that flat closure is an option, and even left with excess skin against their wishes because the care team wanted to give them “future options.”

Rates of hate incidents against the Asian American/Pacific Islander community have tripled since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and it’s taking a toll on the population’s mental well-being. Researchers have linked pandemic-related discrimination to increased anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbances among members of the AAPI community, yet they are much less likely to seek or accept mental health services than any other racial group.

Personalizing cancer treatments through targeted drugs and customized doses can make strides in care for pediatric patients with cancer, cancer specialists said in the National Institutes of Health's News in Health.

Collaborative, interprofessional care for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation recipients improves time to electrolyte repletion; reduces cardiac adverse events, oral mucositis severity, and bloodstream infections; and improves use of patient-controlled anesthesia, researchers reported in study findings presented at the 48th Annual ONS Congress® in April 2023.

The National Institutes of Health’s (NIH's) UNITE, a think tank that identifies and addresses structural racism in NIH and the biomedical research enterprise, began taking steps in February 2021 to address disparities across NIH and the medical community. The think tank’s actions included revising the selection process for NIH director’s awards and establishing a new program to provide additional training opportunities to employees of color, according to UNITE’s first progress report.

Oncology nursing is a hands-on practice, and nurses’ learning must be hands-on, too. Allowing your colleagues to try out what you teach further solidifies their foundational knowledge and new concepts. With the use of oral oncolytic agents exploding in oncology care, we must adapt and learn the ins and outs of these agents. As a unit educator at The University of Kansas Cancer Center in Westwood, I help nursing staff understand my cancer center’s oral agent refill process.

In an attempt to strongly regulate the e-cigarettes and vapes industry, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration filed civil money penalty complaints against four tobacco product manufacturers for manufacturing and selling e-liquid products without authorization. The action marks the first time FDA has filed CMP complaints against tobacco product manufacturers to enforce the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act’s premarket review requirements for new tobacco products. 

The expansion of oral chemotherapy agents since 2000 has transformed the treatment landscape. More than 150 novel oral anticancer medications are currently U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved, with new agents continuously in the pipeline. When caring for patients who are taking oral therapies, oncology nurses and pharmacists can work together to handle drug refills, deliver patient education, and manage the entire treatment cycle—including adverse events.

On April 27, 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported that Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., issued a voluntary recall of certain lots of fentanyl buccal tablets, a schedule II substance, to the consumer level because safety updates were omitted in the lots’ product insert/medication guide. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., manufactured and labeled the product lots exclusively for Mayne Pharma, Inc.

With the anticipated end of the public health emergency looming after three years of being consumed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Health and Human Services, wrote a letter to state governors praising their efforts in the pandemic, offering a supportive hand, and highlighting the Biden-Harris administration’s accomplishments in combating COVID-19.