Because the treatment of symptoms, side effects, and adverse events associated with immunotherapies can differ greatly from the standard of care, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)—along with experts from ONS staff and membership—collaborated to develop guidelines to inform clinicians about managing immune-related adverse events associated with checkpoint inhibitor therapy.

As September winds down, ONS, a partner in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) and American Nurses Association’s Nursing Infection Control Education Network, is raising awareness of Sepsis Awareness Month by highlighting resources and strategies for oncology nurses who are deeply rooted in preventing and treating sepsis in patients with cancer.

New targeted and immunotherapy drug approvals have offered improved survival and disease outcomes for patients with melanoma, but the new therapies are also associated with a range of adverse events (AEs) that differ from those associated with chemotherapy. Oncology nurses will need to shift their thinking to best manage those AEs.

Between administering antineoplastic agents, monitoring patient vitals, and preparing patients for treatment, oncology nurses are required to balance their attention between many intricate tasks. Chief among the division of duties is that oncology nurses closely monitor their patients for hypersensitivity reactions (HSRs) to prescribed agents.

Five to Ten Percent of patients with cancer will need to visit the intensive care unit (ICU) for a life-threatening condition. In fact, estimates suggest that nearly 30% of patients with esophageal cancer or acute leukemia and those undergoing allogenic stem cell transplantation will need ICU care.

On June 23, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved betrixaban (Bevyxxa, Portola) for the prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in adult patients hospitalized for an acute medical illness who are at risk for thromboembolic complications due to moderate or severe restricted mobility and other risk factors for VTE.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy offers options for pediatric patients with relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia, but it comes with a unique set of side effects that can range from mild to severe. As the primary patient providers, oncology nurses are often the first to identify signs and symptoms of adverse events and acute changes in patients’ status. Understanding what to watch for can improve outcomes and help nurses deliver safe, effective care.

Researchers have found that patients receiving sorafenib for differential thyroid cancer are more likely to experience adverse events from the drug, compared to patients with renal or hepatocellular cancers. The findings were published in JAMA Oncology.

Approximately 90% of patients with cancer experience anemia because of disease process, treatment side effects, or coexisting conditions.

Derek is a 20-year-old patient with relapsed acute myeloid leukemia. He will be receiving a bone marrow transplant in the next six days. When discussing Derek’s home medications, he says to the nurse, “I smoke a lot of pot because it helps me feel better about all of this.” Upon further discussion, Derek reveals he started smoking marijuana to relieve nausea. What would you do?

The FDA approved two new immunomodulatory agents, sipuleucel-T and ipilimumab, in 2010 and 2011, respectively. Sipuleucel-T was approved to treat metastatic prostate cancer, and ipilimumab was approved for advanced or metastatic melanoma.

Symp­toms of lung can­cer rarely occur in iso­la­tion