NCCN Publishes New Clinical Practice Guidelines for Vulvar Cancer

Newswise — FORT WASHINGTON, PA — It is estimated that more than 5,000 cases of Vulvar Cancer were diagnosed in the United States in 2015, and approximately 1,000 women died from the disease[i]. In order to provide comprehensive, up-to-date clinical treatment guidelines for this rare cancer, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®), an alliance of 26 of the nation’s leading cancer centers, has published the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) for Vulvar Cancer. The new NCCN Guidelines® for Vulvar Cancer provide recommendations on the evaluation and treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva and include principles of surgery, principles of radiation therapy, and systemic therapy.

NCCN Guidelines document evidence-based consensus-driven management to ensure that all patients receive preventive, diagnostic, treatment, and supportive services that are most likely to lead to optimal outcomes.

“The creation of these new guidelines represents a multidisciplinary effort to codify appropriate standards of care for patients with vulvar cancer, based on available published evidence and contemporary patterns of practice,” said Wui-Jin Koh, MD, Professor of Radiation Oncology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and Co-Chair, NCCN Guidelines Panel for Vulvar Cancer.

“These guidelines are essential to establish a standard of care for this rare disease, and serve as a platform for future investigations and improved outcomes,” said Benjamin E. Greer, MD, Director of Gynecological Cancer, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and Co-Chair, NCCN Guidelines Panel for Vulvar Cancer.

With the publication of the NCCN Guidelines for Vulvar Cancer, the library of NCCN Guidelines now includes 62 clinical guidelines detailing sequential management decisions and interventions that currently apply to 97 percent of cancers affecting people in the United States, as well as cancer prevention, detection and risk reduction, and age-related recommendations.

Available free-of-charge to registered users of NCCN.org and through the Virtual Library of NCCN Guidelines Mobile Apps, NCCN Guidelines document evidence-based, consensus-driven management to help oncologists make the major clinical decisions encountered in managing their patients by providing ready access to synthesized information. The NCCN Guidelines provide recommendations for appropriate care for most, but not all patients; however, individual patient circumstances must be considered when applying these recommendations.

To access the NCCN Guidelines for Vulvar Cancer, visit NCCN.org.

About the National Comprehensive Cancer NetworkThe National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®), a not-for-profit alliance of 26 of the nation’s leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education, is dedicated to improving the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of cancer care so that 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. As the arbiter of 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.

The NCCN Member Institutions are: 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 Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, 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 Cancer Institute, 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 Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX; 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.

[i] "Cancer Facts & Figures 2015." American Cancer Society. Web. 12 Jan. 2016.