Series Description: 

Cancer outcomes are better when patients are managed according to the principles of multidisciplinary team evaluation. This process is associated with improved clinical decision making, clinical outcomes, and patient experience. Tumor boards support our interdisciplinary team in their self-correcting capacity for accurate diagnosis and TNM classification (cancer staging). It enabled cross-validation of diagnostic findings, surfaced discordance between diagnostic tests and facilitated cancer staging according to the diagnostic evidence, as well as spotting contra-indications for personalized treatment selection.

Target Audience: 

Nurse Practitioner (NP)

Nurse, Registered (RN)

Pharmacists (PharmD)

Physicians (MD or DO)

Physician Assistant (PA)

Social Workers

Learning Objectives: 

1. Engage in interprofessional collaboration during review of difficult and unique patient cases in order gain consensus and achieve an informed decision on the ideal treatment plan for each patient presented at the Tumor Board utilizing evidence-based guidelines (i.e., NCCN).

2. Apply best practice recommendations in the practice of clinical staging documentation.

3. Engage in shared decision-making discussions with the patient and family about palliative care preferences, genetic testing, or smoking cessation as applicable.

4. Demonstrate cultural humility in the ability to deliver culturally appropriate care, free of implicit biases, for families of diverse cultural backgrounds and belief systems. This includes learning from the patients and families directly about how they perceive health and illness as well as respond to various diseases, symptoms, and treatments.

Culturally Appropriate Care Which is Free of Implicit Biases (AB 1195 & 241):

• Yedjou, C., Sims, J., Miele, L. Noubissi, F., Lowe, L. Fonsea, D., Alo, R., Payton, M. & Tchounwou, P. (2019). Health and racial disparity in breast cancer. Adv Exp Med Biol; 1152: 31-49. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6941147/
• Wang, M., Huang, J., & Chagpar, A. (2020). Is there a bias against obese patients in the treatment of breast cancer? The American Surgeon; 88(6). https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0003134820984877

• Alcaraz, K. I., Wiedt, T. L., Daniels, E., Yabroff, K. R., Guerra, C. E., & Wender, R. C. (2019). Understanding and addressing social determinants to advance cancer health equity in the United States: A blueprint for practice, research, and policy. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, 70(1), 31–46. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31661164/

Disclosure of Financial or In-Kind Commercial Support & Conflict of Interest

No one involved in the planning or presentation of this educational activity have any relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. No financial or in-kind commercial support was received to produce or promote this educational activity.   

– Provider Designee/Verification: Kerri Maya, MSL, RN