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Specific Populations

LGBTQ+ Patients With Cancer Need Education Tailored to Their Identity

More than two-thirds of patients who identify as LGBTQ+ lack at least one vital health education resource tailored to their identity, researchers reported in study findings presented at the 15th American Association for Cancer Research Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved. Additionally, nearly three-quarters of those patients desire posttreatment plans that include LGBTQ+ specific information.

Evidence-Based Practice

Transform LGBTQ+ Cancer Care With These Evidence-Based Nursing Strategies

Less than 20% of National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program practices routinely report collecting sexual orientation and gender identity data, limiting the available evidence to support recommendations for oncology nursing care of a vulnerable LGBTQ+ population that faces biases, stigma, cultural insensitivity, inequities, and disparities. In a 2022 Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing article, ONS member Georgina T. Rodgers, BSN, RN, OCN®, NE-BC, and colleagues evaluated the latest studies to identify best practices and care considerations for LGBTQ+ patients with cancer.

Cancer Screening

These Factors May Increase Cancer Screening Rates for Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals

Race, sex, education level, and healthcare coverage status all contribute to cancer screening disparities among sexual and gender minority populations, researchers reported in the March 2023 issue of the Oncology Nursing Forum.

Cultural Competency

Cultural Competence Training Promotes Safe and Inclusive LGBTQ+ Patient Care

Successfully addressing sensitive topics, such as homophobia and LGBTQ+ biases, is best achieved in small, interactive groups, clinical nurse scientists said in a quality improvement project report published in the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing.

Advanced Practice Nursing (APRN)

APRNs Develop Institutional Bladder Irrigation Guideline That Dramatically Reduces CAUTI Rates

Implementing intermittent bladder irrigation guidelines reduces catheter-associated urinary tract infection rates by more than 80%, ONS member Christine Wallace, MSN, APRN-CNS, said during a podium presentation at the 48th Annual ONS Congress® in April 2023.

Clinical Practice

AYA Champions Clinic Fills Gaps in Care and Addresses Unmet Needs

Nearly all adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients with cancer who use the services of a population-specific clinic would recommend it to other AYAs with cancer, researchers reported during a session at the 48th Annual ONS Congress® in April 2023. They said that more than 90,000 AYAs aged 15–39 are diagnosed with cancer every year in the United States, a critical life stage in which cancer can deeply affect individuals’ social, developmental, educational, professional, and financial growth, making services like specialized clinics critical to an AYA patient population.

Interprofessional Teams

Interprofessional Collaboration Reduces Time to Neutropenia Antibiotic Administration

A multipronged approach that incorporates all disciplines on the interprofessional cancer care team resulted in a 34% improvement in antibiotic initiation within 30 minutes of a neutropenia diagnosis on a 24-bed blood and marrow unit, according to study findings presented at the 48th Annual ONS Congress® in April 2023.

Nursing Education

NCPD Podcasts Increase Oncology Nurses’ Confidence and Competence in Managing Toxicities

Listening to educational podcasts improves oncology nurse learners’ knowledge of managing treatment-related adverse events by 11%–27% and safety by 24%, researchers reported during a podium presentation at the 48th Annual ONS Congress® in April 2023.

Clinician Biases Leave Patients Feeling Unsupported When Electing for Flat Closure Mastectomies

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.”

Clinical Practice

Nurse-Pharmacist Collaboration Improves HSCT Patient Outcomes

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.

Cancer Screening

Most Cancer Screening Guidelines Don’t Disclose Potential Harms

For nearly 2,500 years, nonmaleficence, or “do no harm,” has been a fundamental tenet of medical ethics. Yet none of today’s U.S. breast, cervical, colorectal, lung, or prostate cancer screening guidelines report all of the harms associated with screening tests, researchers said in study results published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Modified Chemo Drug Kills More Cancer Cells, Activates Immune Cells—and Has Fewer Toxicities

Once abandoned because of dose-limiting toxicities, a novel chemotherapy drug is showing even more promise as a modified prodrug. In study results published in Science Advances, researchers demonstrated how turning DRP-104 into a prodrug enables it to kill more tumor cells and activate CD8+ T cells with a “markedly improved tolerability profile.”

Access to Cancer Care

Patients With Cancer Save More Than $150 Per Visit When Using Telehealth

Between travel time and expenses, missed work hours, and other factors, cancer care visits cost patients more than just a copay. A new study quantified the financial benefits of conducting those visits via telehealth versus in person, with researchers reporting that patients saved more than $150 in expenses and three hours in travel and waiting time per visit by using telehealth. They published their findings in JAMA Network Open.

Advance Care Planning

Nurse-Led Education Program Leads to Threefold Increase in ACP Documentation

A multimodal nursing education intervention using ONS resources, didactic teaching, and small group discussions grew one institution’s advance care planning (ACP) documentation rates from 0% to 63%, according to a report published in the February 2023 issue of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing. Nurse participants also reported increases in ACP discussions and a clinically significant improvement in their overall comfort level with ACP conversations.

End of Life (EOL)

Black and Hispanic Patients Get Fewer Opioids but More Toxicology Screening for Pain at End of Life

Opioids are the recommended treatment of choice for cancer pain at the end of life according to all major guidelines, but Black and Hispanic patients are 13% and 11% less likely than their White counterparts, respectively, to obtain prescription opioids for cancer-related pain at the end of life, researchers reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Platinum Chemo Improves TNBC Survival for Patients Younger Than 50

Adding carboplatin to standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients with triple-negative breast cancer improves complete response, event-free survival, and overall survival, researchers reported in study findings presented in abstract GS5-01 during the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

Lung Cancer Screening and Early Detection Drastically Improves Survival Rates

Increases in early-stage lung cancer diagnoses with low-dose computed tomography screening have led to sustained improvements in survival rates more than 20 years later, researchers said while presenting their study findings at the 2022 Radiological Society of North America annual meeting.

Specific Populations

RNs Need More Education About Reasonable Accommodations for Patients With Intellectual Disabilities

Nearly 60% of RNs say they have limited awareness of the concept of reasonable accommodations for patients with intellectual disabilities, researchers reported in the Journal of Advanced Nursing. They said their findings indicate a dire need for increased nursing education and training.

Four R’s and Resilience Approach Help Oncology Nurses Respond to Morally Distressing Challenges

Disparity. Inequity. Futility. Barriers. Miscommunication. Unacceptance of the inevitable. Ethical and moral challenges perpetuate throughout practice for today’s healthcare workers, particularly oncology nurses in cancer care. As those burdens build up, nurses struggle to sustain their resilience and risk developing burnout or even leaving the profession entirely.

Nursing Education

Watch Your Words to Lose the Weight Bias in Health Care

Weight bias and stigma are evident across all professionals in the health care industry, including physicians, nurses, dietitians, and mental healthcare providers, researchers reported in Nursing Clinics of North America. They said that using people-first language is critical to reducing bias and discrimination.

Patient Empowerment

Tip Sheet Helps Nurses Confront Systemic Racism by Providing Equitable Hair Care

Maintaining a patient’s personal grooming during an inpatient stay is an important aspect of holistic nursing care, but nurses and hospitals alike may fall short when it comes to textured hair care, nurses reported in the American Journal of Nursing.

February 22, 2023

Clinical Practice

Nurse-Led Bone Marrow Biopsy Clinics Truncate Time for Testing, Treatment

Patients with suspected hematologic cancers complete the bone marrow biopsy processes and begin treatment more than one month sooner when the procedures are shifted from interventional radiology to a dedicated, nurse-led bone marrow biopsy clinic, researchers reported in a poster presentation at the Association of VA Hematology/Oncology meeting.

February 15, 2023

Postdischarge ICI Patient Education Eliminates Hospital Readmissions

None of the patients who were admitted for an immune checkpoint inhibitor–related toxicity but received structured teaching at discharge were subsequently readmitted within 30 days, compared to nearly 50% of patients who did not receive teaching, ONS member Michelle L. Rohlfs, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, AOCNP^®, reported in study findings published in the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing.

February 14, 2023

Nearly 25% of Patients With Cancer Are Victims of Intimate Partner Violence

Anger is a common emotion for both patients and their partners when facing cancer, but in almost a quarter of relationships, that anger turns psychologically or physically violent. According to the results of a new study published in Supportive Care in Cancer, both genders report acts of abuse from their partners during the cancer journey.

February 08, 2023

Specific Populations

Black Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer Are Less Informed About Their Clinical Trial Options

Healthcare providers are less likely to talk to Black patients with metastatic breast cancer about opportunities to enroll in clinical trials than they are with patients from other racial or ethnic backgrounds, researchers reported at the 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting.

February 01, 2023

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To discuss the information in this article with other oncology nurses, visit the ONS Communities.

To report a content error, inaccuracy, or typo, email pubONSVoice@ons.org.

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Elisa Becze BA, ELS, Editor

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