When scheduling appointments for patients newly diagnosed with cancer, patient coordinators may have questions for the patient’s care team. Rather than interrupting direct care providers during their clinical duties, an oncology service access nurse can step in for support, bringing value to both patients and providers.

Complex cancer treatments like bispecific antibodies and chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy are associated with equally complex side effects and complications. When patients experience signs and symptoms back home away from their dedicated cancer care team, how should they seek intervention? Should they go to the emergency room? The local urgent care facility? Call 9-1-1? And, if they do any of those things, will the healthcare providers in those settings know how to care for them?

My undergraduate alma mater is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. Their communications recognize its history and remind alumni of the phrase one university president frequently used to describe the university: outrageous ambition.

Firefighters may have an increased risk of prostate cancer because of on-the-job chemical exposures, according to new data from the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study. Firefighters are diagnosed with prostate cancer at a rate 1.21 times higher than the general population, possibly because of chemical exposures, including smoke and firefighting foam, during firefighting.

On May 29, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that Sagent Pharmaceuticals issued voluntary nationwide recall of two lots of docetaxel injection, USP (80 mg per 8 ml multidose vials and 160 mg per 16 ml multidose vials), because of the potential presence of particulate matter from the stopper in the drug product.

On May 30, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved lisocabtagene maraleucel (Breyanzi^®) for adult patients with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma who have received at least two prior lines of systemic therapy, including a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor.

Nurses who specialize in oncology need specific knowledge and skills to ensure they are prepared to deliver high-quality patient care. That need is particularly pressing in low- and middle-income countries.

On May 29, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to selpercatinib (Retevmo^®) for pediatric patients aged 2 and older. This is the first FDA approval of a targeted therapy for pediatric patients younger than 12 with RET alterations.

Oncology nurses care for a complex patient population, and the inevitable emotional exhaustion and compassion fatigue that result can lead to decreased productivity, high staff turnover, and increased use of sick days. In a poster session on April 25, 2024, during the 49th Annual ONS Congress^®, ONS members Jacqueline Anorga, RN, Meghan Manthorpe, BMTCN^®, RN, BSN, and Maria Weinstein, MSN, RN, DON, described how they formed an oncology nursing peer group to provide connections and interventions to address burnout, fatigue, and turnover.