NCCN 2019 Annual Conference Includes Focus on Patient Experience with Innovative Therapies, Plus Updates on Biomarkers, Biosimilars, and the Latest Research on Cancer Care

Newswise — ORLANDO, FL [March 4, 2019] — More than 1,500 cancer care professionals are meeting in Orlando, Florida, March 21-23, for the NCCN 2019 Annual Conference, presented by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network^® (NCCN^®)—an alliance of 28 leading cancer centers. The conference offers more than 25 sessions presenting the latest treatment recommendations for lung, breast, prostate, colon, and other cancers, including new and emerging therapies. Other key topics include coordination of care, pain management during an opioid crisis, biosimilars, cancer-associated distress, biomarkers, genetic testing, and appropriate transition to end-of-life care. The keynote session highlights the benefits and challenges of treatment with new and innovative therapies (e.g. CAR T-cell) from the perspective of the patient and the clinicians caring for them.

“Cancer treatment is becoming more complex every day,” said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. “It’s increasingly important and valuable for clinicians to stay up-to-date on any new research. The NCCN 2019 Annual Conference focuses on the practical management of patients with cancer, provides updates on NCCN Guidelines, and includes other educational sessions on new treatments, therapies, and trends, and their application in patient care. Clinicians who attend will come away with a better understanding of how their patients can have the best possible outcomes in terms of health, emotional well-being, and overall experience.”

The NCCN 2019 Annual Conference includes learning opportunities for the entire health care team. There is a session titled NCCN Nursing Program: Advancing Oncology Nursing™ on March 20, which includes clinical updates as well as best practices for managing malnutrition and immunotherapy symptom management and patient education. On March 24, the NCCN 2019 Oncology Fellows Program: New Horizons in Quality Cancer Care™ presents treatment considerations for adolescents and young adults with cancer, strategies to promote wellness and prevent burnout, and the latest recommendations for cancer treatments.

The NCCN Oncology Research Program (ORP) will showcase 145 poster presentations on subjects like best practices, pre-clinical oncology, clinical oncology, correlative/genomic, epidemiology/risks, outcomes and health services research, quality improvements, and bioinformatics/IT. The NCCN ORP will also present Young Investigator Awards, with support from the NCCN Foundation^®, to some of the most promising early-career researchers in the country.

The exhibition hall features more than 20 advocacy groups representing a range of cancer types and supportive care services. It also includes a reimbursement resource section and a health information technology corner.

The keynote discussion regarding the patient experience with innovative therapies will be moderated by Frederick L. Locke, MD, Moffitt Cancer Center and will feature Jeffrey Backer, MD, FACEP, Emergency Physician and Cancer Survivor and Alix Beaupierre, BSN, RN, OCN, Moffitt Cancer Center. Dr. Locke will then be joined for an emerging issues roundtable that also includes Stefanie Joho, Survivor, Health Advocate, and Consultant; Jennifer Malin, MD, PhD, UnitedHealth Group; John W. Sweetenham, MD, Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah; and Lalan S. Wilfong, MD, Texas Oncology.

There will also be an invited presentation on the NCCN Harmonized Guidelines™ for Sub-Saharan Africa by Abubakar M. Bello, MD, of the National Hospital Abuja (Nigeria).

Additional faculty presenters include:

• Emmanuel S. Antonarakis, MD, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins
• Carlin Callaway, DNP, RN, University of Colorado Cancer Center
• Toby C. Campbell, MD, MSCI, University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center
• Jimmy J. Caudell, MD, PhD, Moffitt Cancer Center
• Marianne Davies, DNP, MSN, ACNP-BC, AOCNP, Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital
• Thomas W. Flaig, MD, University of Colorado Cancer Center
• Suzanne George, MD, Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center
• Timothy D. Gilligan, MD, MS, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center/University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center and Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute
• William J. Gradishar, MD, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University
• Matthew A. Gubens, MD, MS, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Eric Jonasch, MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Thomas Kaley, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Gary H. Lyman, MD, MPH, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance
• Wells A. Messersmith, MD, University of Colorado Cancer Center
• James L. Mohler, MD, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Louis B. Nabors, MD, University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Jarushka Naidoo, MD, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins
• David M. O'Malley, MD, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute
• Anthony J. Olszanski, MD, RPh, Fox Chase Cancer Center
• Linda Overholser, MD, MPH, University of Colorado Cancer Center
• Judith A. Paice, PhD, RN, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University
• Michelle B. Riba, MD, MS, University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center
• Aysegul A. Sahin, MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Neil P. Shah, MD, PhD, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Jonathan R. Strosberg, MD, Moffitt Cancer Center
• Melinda L. Telli, MD, Stanford Cancer Institute
• Margaret A. Tempero, MD, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• John H. Ward, MD, Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah

Visit NCCN.org/conference for the complete, timed agenda. Join the conversation online with the hashtag #NCCNac19.

About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network^® (NCCN^®) is a not-for-profit alliance of 28 leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education. NCCN is dedicated to improving and facilitating quality, effective, efficient, and accessible cancer care so patients can live better lives. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. By defining and advancing high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers around the world.

The NCCN Member Institutions are: Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, Omaha, NE; Case Comprehensive Cancer Center/University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center and Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute, Cleveland, OH; City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA; Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center | Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Boston, MA; Duke Cancer Institute, Durham, NC; Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA; Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT; Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, WA; The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, MD; Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, Chicago, IL; Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Phoenix/Scottsdale, AZ, Jacksonville, FL, and Rochester, MN; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY; Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL; The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, Columbus, OH; Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY; Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO; St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital/The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN; Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford, CA; University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center, Birmingham, AL; UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, La Jolla, CA; UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, CA; University of Colorado Cancer Center, Aurora, CO; University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX; University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center, Madison, WI; Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville, TN; and Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital, New Haven, CT.

Clinicians, visit NCCN.org. Patients and caregivers, visit NCCN.org/patients. Media, visit NCCN.org/news. Follow NCCN on Twitter @NCCNnews and Facebook @National.Comprehensive.Cancer.Network.