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Check out the latest article Cancer Network published about Dr. Mao, SIO past-president and current Board of Trustee member, on the updated guidelines from ASCO and SIO for pain management in patients with cancer.
Read more here.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: Hanna Hayden
September 19, 2022 hhayden@thereisgroup.com
New recommendations address the use of integrative therapies for pain management in cancer populations
The joint practice guideline results from a partnership between the Society for Integrative Oncology and the American Society of Clinical Oncology
WASHINGTON, D.C. (September 19, 2022)—A new joint practice guideline from the Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) has been published to address gaps in healthcare providers’ knowledge of how to safely and effectively treat common cancer symptoms and side effects using integrative medicine approaches.
“Pain is a clinical challenge for many oncology patients and clinicians, and there’s a growing body of evidence showing that integrative therapies can be useful in pain management. But to date there has not been clear clinical guidance about when and when not to use these approaches,” said Heather Greenlee, ND, PhD, co-chair of the SIO Clinical Practice Guideline Committee.
SIO joined forces with ASCO to develop a clinical practice guideline on the use of integrative therapies and pain management, building off of ASCO’s existing guideline focused on cancer pain. “This new guideline takes a deeper dive on the use of integrative therapies, which is important because clinicians and patients need to have access to the latest evidence-based information to make clinical decisions,” said Jun J. Mao, MD, MSCE, co-chair of the SIO-ASCO guideline on use of integrative therapies for pain management.
Integrative oncology is a patient-centered, evidence-informed field of cancer care that utilizes mind and body practices, natural products, and/or lifestyle modifications from different traditions alongside conventional cancer treatments. Integrative oncology aims to optimize health, quality of life, and clinical outcomes across the cancer care continuum and to empower people to prevent cancer and become active participants before, during, and beyond cancer treatment.
“Practice guidelines are a critical way to ensure healthcare providers use treatments that are based on quality evidence from scientific studies that have shown the treatment to be effective and safe,” said Immediate Past Chair of the ASCO® Evidence-Based Medicine Committee, Scott T. Tagawa, MD, MS, FACP. “The guidelines focus on important concerns in patient care that greatly impact quality of life and will help equip the oncology community with the essential knowledge needed to manage integrative therapy approaches.”
The SIO-ASCO guideline was developed following a rigorous review of published literature, including literature only from randomized clinical trials—the gold standard in healthcare research. A large panel of oncology experts was convened, co-chaired by Jun J. Mao, MD, MSCE, of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center representing SIO, and Eduardo Bruera, MD, of MD Anderson Cancer Center representing ASCO. The panel reviewed existing evidence and assessed the quality of studies; once consensus was reached, recommendations were made based on the strength of the evidence available.
Among the guideline’s strongest recommendations are that acupuncture be offered to breast cancer patients experiencing joint pain related to the use of a medication common in breast oncology called aromatase inhibitors. Because there was moderately strong evidence supporting its effectiveness and its low risk of harm, the expert panel also recommended acupuncture for general cancer pain or musculoskeletal pain as well as for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy.
The guideline also recommends the use of massage therapy for patients in palliative care or hospice who are experiencing pain.
“Clinician uptake of evidence-based treatments is always a concern, which is one of the reasons why we create practice guidelines,” said Dr. Bruera. “We are hoping that by showing the growing evidence that is out there, healthcare systems will start hiring these kinds of practitioners and insurance systems will start covering these treatments, because more and more, these are being shown to be effective at managing pain for cancer populations.”
Because the expert panel was conservative in making their recommendations, the guideline also includes areas identified as potentially relevant to cancer care but needing more research. This distinction is important because the lack of endorsement for a given therapy is not an indication that the therapy is necessarily ineffective or unsafe. Rather, it indicates that the expert panel felt the evidence was insufficient to support its recommendation. For instance, said Dr. Greenlee, more studies are needed to assess the safety and effectiveness of natural products.
To ensure patients can play a role in the treatment decision-making process and to inform their discussions about integrative therapies with their oncologists, ASCO and SIO have also posted a listing of integrative medicine patient resources on their respective websites.
“This is the first of three evidence-based guidelines for adults that SIO and ASCO are developing together, which combines the strengths of these two organizations,” added Linda E. Carlson, PhD, President of SIO. “The goal of this important collaboration is to inform as many clinicians and patients as possible about where the evidence for integrative therapies lies to support the best clinical outcomes possible for all cancer patients. And we believe this new guideline accomplishes that.”
SIO received an unrestricted grant to fund guideline development from the Samueli Foundation.
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ASCO® is a registered trademark of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. and is used with permission. ASCO is not a partner or affiliate of SIO and does not recommend or endorse any organization, product, or service.
About The Society for Integrative Oncology:
Founded in 2003, SIO is the premier multi-disciplinary international professional organization for integrative oncology. The mission of the SIO is to advance evidence-based, comprehensive, integrative healthcare to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. SIO enables communication, education, and research to occur by bringing together practitioners and researchers across professions focused on the care of cancer patients and survivors. Members share the common goals of excellent comprehensive patient care, enhancement of anti-cancer therapy, supportive care, and prevention of cancer. SIO members are part of a unique multidisciplinary community of oncologists, nurses, psychologists, social workers, nutritionists, complementary therapy practitioners, naturopathic doctors, acupuncturists, massage therapists, epidemiologists, researchers, and many other health care practitioners. Learn more at https://integrativeonc.org/, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.
We are in our 6th year of building a diverse community of transdisciplinary (TD) and translational (TL) researchers including those interested in cancer disparities and invite you to apply to our mentored program: The Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer (TREC) Training Workshop.
The Workshop builds upon the NCI TREC Initiative and covers topics across the cancer control and T 0 -T 4 continua.
Funded by the U.S. National Cancer Institute and led by Yale University’s Dr. Melinda Irwin with a Senior Advisory Board and expert international faculty, this program builds capacity in TD and TL energetics and cancer research and is designed for early career investigators (i.e., junior faculty and postdocs). This 5-day, in residence* Workshop places emphasis on developing and applying TD and TL competencies focused on energetics (i.e., obesity, diet and exercise) and cancer. Faculty span an array of professional disciplines, from basic scientists to clinicians to behavioral and population scientists. Formal didactic learning is integrated with one-on-one dialog and small group discussions to enable fellows to learn from each other, from faculty, and to develop a TD and TL network.
Below are a few of many testimonials as voiced by our previous cohorts.
The 6 th annual course will be held June 19-24, 2022 at Water’s Edge Resort, Westbrook, CT, U.S.A.*
Costs will be covered.
Notification of Intent to apply (simple, informal email to dlowry@fredhutch.org) is due no later than December 15, 2021. Full application is due no later than Friday, January 14, 2022.
For more detail and to apply, visit TRECTraining.yale.edu. Questions: contact Diana Lowry dlowry@fredhutch.org
*Travel contingent on safety allowances due to the COVID-19 pandemic. If necessary, we will conduct the 2022 Workshop virtually via Zoom, June 19-24, 2022. Decision will be made by April 1, 2022.
***** Testimonials ********
This was an amazing experience and completely unique. (Fellow)
This workshop reaffirmed my commitment to energy balance and cancer research. Connecting with experts in the field and gaining their input into developing ideas was critical. (Fellow)
This training and networking was awesome! There was clearly a cumulative effect of 6 days together. (Fellow)
The caliber of trainees and faculty is amazing. What a treat to be able to interact with this group. (Faculty)
A meeting unlike any other. Many opportunities for networking and collaboration. Highly recommend! (Fellow)
The TREC Workshop was incredibly helpful. I learned about grant writing, transdisciplinary research, and gained more knowledge in the field in one week than I could have in one year. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet experts in energy balance who are there to educate and mentor young investigators. I’ve kept in touch with a few of the faculty and co-fellows, and I hope to keep these relationships for years to come. (Fellow)
Caliber of faculty & fellows = amazing week of high-quality science, networking, career advice, collaboration! (Fellow)
High bar to meet going forward! Kudos all around! (Faculty)
The networking and collaborative opportunities at this meeting are unmatched! (Fellow)
The TREC Workshop was phenomenal. The opportunity to be in a small group setting with such important thought leaders in the field of energy balance was unique and invaluable. The curriculum was well-thought out and balanced, covering all components of this transdisciplinary field. There was also plenty of time for informal networking and brainstorming. (Fellow)
On Friday, October 16 through Saturday, October 17, 2020, SIO’s 17th International Conference (Virtual Edition) will present an exceptional opportunity to learn about new findings in integrative oncology from healthcare/scientific disciplines that have the potential to transform cancer care internationally.
The 2020 virtual theme is “COVID-19 and Integrative Oncology: Meeting the Global Challenges of Health Equity.” This special virtual edition of the conference will feature keynote, plenary and concurrent sessions, as well as workshops
highlighting the latest clinical, research and methodological issues, and offers opportunities to learn about integrative modalities within the new realm of COVID-19 and ongoing challenges of health equity.
The conference is being organized and executed through the online platform and tool, Whova. Much more to come!
The current COVID-19 pandemic has acutely affected the Navajo Nation, which lives in a region spanning parts of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. Historically, the Navajo People have suffered high rates of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, all of which contribute to increased risk for poorer COVID-19 outcomes.
For decades, tribal land has been left without basic infrastructure such as running water, electricity and paved roads.
The Indian Health Service has been chronically underfunded, and the Tuba City Regional Healthcare Corporation is the only cancer treatment location on any Native American soil. The SIO is honored to present this support initiative. Donations will go directly to Tuba City Regional Healthcare through the Cancer Support Community donation page, and will be used for essential healthcare needs such as PPE for staff and hand sanitizer. Please join us in this opportunity to improve the lives of those who suffer such health disparities. Learn more on our COVID-19 Resources page and submit your contribution on our Donation page.
Through this partnership, SIO will gain significant reach into the cancer-treatment community through UBM Medica’s oncology distribution channels – the ONCOLOGY journal and CancerNetwork.com – allowing SIO members greater access to information impacting the field of oncology as well as their day-to-day clinical practice.
In turn, with the addition of one of SIO’s key thought leaders to its respected editorial advisory board, the ONCOLOGY journal will be able to provide more relevant integrative oncology information to its readership, furthering SIO’s mission to advance evidence-based, comprehensive, integrative healthcare to improve the lives of people affected by cancer.
“We are very excited to enter in to this partnership with SIO, which will not only allow the ONCOLOGY journal to offer a greater breadth of information on integrative oncology, but it will increase SIO’s visibility and impact in the oncology field,” said Nora Ray, Editorial Director of Oncology at UBM Medica. “This benefits the members of SIO and ONCOLOGY’s readership alike.”
About SIO: About the Society for Integrative Oncology: The Society for Integrative Oncology is the leading worldwide organization dedicated to integrative medicine specific to cancer patients. A non-profit, multi-disciplinary organization founded in 2003, the organization’s mission is to advance evidence-based, comprehensive, integrative healthcare to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. For more information, visit www.integrativeonc.org.
About UBM Medica: UBM Medica provides unbiased clinical, practical, and business information to over 1 million healthcare providers, resulting in improved quality of care for patients around the world. We serve our clients in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and related industries by delivering strategic, integrated communications solutions at the point of patient care – whether online, mobile, or in print. Our reach extends to practitioners and decision makers in primary care, pediatrics, cancer care, psychiatry, dermatology, endocrinology, eye care, neurology, women’s health, men’s health, radiology, managed care, pharmacy, and more. For more information, visit www.ubmmedica.com.
UBM Medica, a leading provider of educational resources to healthcare professionals, and SIO have begun a partnership to offer SIO members access to ONCOLOGY journal and CancerNetwork.com as a benefit of membership. Through the partnership, SIO also will provide content on integrativeoncology.
Mistletoe extracts are used to treat a variety of conditions including cancer, AIDS, hepatitis, and degenerative joint disease. Preclinical studies indicate that mistletoe extracts have anticancer effects, with lectins being the active constituents. Clinical data suggest utility of mistletoe therapy, mainly in the injectable form, for improving symptoms including pain, fatigue, insomnia; and for improving quality of life in cancer patients. These findings have led to the use of mistletoe as an adjuvant treatment in some countries. However, more rigorous studies are needed to determine its potential benefits.
Oral preparations are marketed as dietary supplements and homeopathic remedies in the United States. But injections are not available outside of clinical trials because mistletoe is not approved for medical use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Read more
This resource is provided with thanks to the Integrative Medicine Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, which maintains a free web site, About Herbs.
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We chose mistletoe for this month because of the continued debate over its use. A semi-parasitic plant, mistletoe grows on many species of trees native to Europe and Western Asia. The leaves and twigs have a long medicinal history, but the berries are highly poisonous.
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Acai has been promoted, starting in the 1990s, to reverse aging, to reduce high cholesterol, treat heart disease, for weight loss, and as an anticancer agent. It is marketed in the form of juice, energy drinks,
tablets, and as an ingredient in cosmetics. Acai berry, rich in anthocyanins, demonstrated antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumorigenic effects in vitro and in animal models.
A small study suggests that acai may benefit overweight men by improving vascular function. But the claims of disease prevention and cure have yet to be substantiated. Due to its antioxidant property, acai may interfere with the actions of certain chemotherapy drugs. Read more
This resource is provided with thanks to the Integrative Medicine Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, which maintains a free web site, About Herbs.
We chose acai berry for this issue because of its popular use for promoting health and as an anticancer agent. A small berry that grows on a palm tree, acai is indigenous to the Amazon region and in Central and South Americas where it is consumed as food, and used in traditional medicine.
Please fill out the virtual conference application form.
Deadline to apply is 11:59pm ET, Friday, September 18, 2020.
Awardees Conference Scholarship Application SIO2020VirtualConference will be notified by October 2, 2020.
SIO is thrilled to announce our popular Wellness Wednesday series will return this summer with two webinars per month from June through August. Each Wellness Wednesday will include a free, live, one-hour informal lunch conversation with cancer subject matter experts who will illuminate the challenges faced by people touched by cancer, particularly those in underrepresented communities. Our goal is to highlight the benefits of integrative medicine in the context of equitable cancer care.
Click here for information on Episode One.
Click here for information on Episode Two.
Click here for information on Episode Three.
Click here for information on Episode Four.
Click here for information on Episode Five.
Click here for information on Episode Six.
SIO Wellness Wednesdays Series Available on YouTube
In case you missed our 2020 summer series #WellnessWednesdays – or, if you want to watch an episode again, visit SIO’s YouTube channel to access recordings and the meditations and yoga practices.
“It is critical to separate evidence-based, integrative health approaches from those without evidence,” said Ting Bao, MD, DAMBA, MS, president of SIO. “These guidelines will help the cancer community ensure safe, effective use of integrative approaches for managing patients’ cancer-related symptoms.”
The majority of people with cancer seek out integrative therapies sometime after receiving their diagnosis. Integrative health approaches during cancer care are patient-centered treatments that utilize evidence-informed mind and body practices, natural products, and/or lifestyle modifications from various traditions, alongside conventional cancer treatments.
“We are delighted to collaborate with SIO on the development of evidence-based guidelines that will help optimize the care of patients with cancer using therapies complementary to cancer treatment,” said Chair of the ASCO® Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee, Douglas E. Peterson, DMD, PhD. “The guidelines will focus on important concerns in patient care that greatly impact quality of life, and will help equip the oncology community with the essential knowledge needed to manage integrative therapy approaches.”
SIO and ASCO® will convene independent panels of experts representing members of both societies to produce a series of three evidence-based guidelines for adults focusing on cancer-related pain management, fatigue in cancer survivors, and care of anxiety and depressive symptoms experienced by those with cancer. The topics were selected based on expert consensus and surveys of SIO’s membership. Each expert panel will review published literature, including systematic reviews and existing guidelines. The expert panels will outline and recommend evidence-based integrative therapies to use, as well as caution against ineffective or harmful approaches, for specific clinical indications during and after cancer treatment.
“Many patients already use integrative approaches during and after their cancer treatment, but medical decisions need to be made based on firm science,” said Heather Greenlee, ND, PhD, co-chair of SIO’s Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee. “By co-developing these clinical guidelines, SIO and ASCO® will help bring this evidence-based treatment information to patients and oncologists worldwide, so they can wisely allocate resources to the most effective complementary approaches.”
SIO received an unrestricted grant to fund guideline development from the Samueli Foundation.
ASCO® is a registered trademark of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. and is used with permission. ASCO is not a partner or affiliate of SIO and does not recommend or endorse any organization, product, or service.
About The Society for Integrative Oncology:
Founded in 2003, SIO is the premier multi-disciplinary international professional organization for integrative oncology. The mission of the SIO is to advance evidence-based, comprehensive, integrative healthcare to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. SIO enables communication, education, and research to occur by bringing together practitioners and researchers across professions focused on the care of cancer patients and survivors. Members share the common goals of excellent comprehensive patient care, enhancement of anti-cancer therapy, supportive care, and prevention of cancer. SIO members are part of a unique multidisciplinary community of oncologists, nurses, psychologists, social workers, nutritionists, complementary therapy practitioners, naturopathic doctors, acupuncturists, massage therapists, epidemiologists, researchers, and many other health care practitioners. Learn more at https://integrativeonc.org/, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Tamara Moore, 202-868-4008
October 27, 2020 tmoore@thereisgroup.com
SIO to Work with Leading Oncology Society on Guidelines for Integrative Approaches for Cancer Care
Medical societies to develop three evidence-based clinical practice guidelines in 2021
WASHINGTON (October 27, 2020) – The Society for Integrative Oncology announced today that it is collaborating with the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®), the world’s leading professional organization of its kind representing oncology professionals who care for people living with cancer, to develop a series of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for integrative therapies in oncology care. The guidelines, planned for publication in 2021 and 2022, will provide clinicians and patients much-needed guidance on safely and effectively treating common cancer symptoms and side effects using integrative approaches.
Integrative Oncology Talk – a top rated podcast – featuring Dr. Santosh Rao, president-elect of SIO as he interviews various movers and shakers in the integrative oncology field is available here. The podcast has since evolved into video format: Integrative Oncology Talk video series hosted by Dr. Rao, Dr. Judith Lacey, a Supportive Care and Integrative Oncology Physician, and Leigh Leibel, a Mind-Body Specialist. The Society for Integrative Oncology, an international multidisciplinary organization whose mission is to advance the science and education of integrative oncology worldwide is proud to help support this video series, and it is available here.
New from Integrative Oncology Talk are discussions with Dr. Claudia Witt about integrative oncology core competencies and Dr. Sheila Garland and Dr. Ashwin Mehta about sleep dysfunction. Click here for the video cast. Click here for the podcast.
Stay tuned for new content on a regular basis as we announce them on our SIO account on twitter, linkedin, facebook, and less commonly instagram.
Click here to view this month’s digest.
In this episode of “Oncology Peer Review On-The-Go”, CancerNetwork takes a look at an article publishing in early 2021 for the Journal ONCOLOGY, titled “Patient-Reported Outcomes of Pain and Related Symptoms in Integrative Oncology Practice and Clinical Research: Evidence and Recommendations.”
The piece summarizes current and validated patient-reported outcomes (PROs) specific to cancer-related pain. The piece also recommends commonly used PROs to be standardized to aid integrative oncology clinicians and researchers in both patient care and study design. For the first of 2 interviews regarding this piece, CancerNetwork spoke with 3 authors of the article, W. Iris Zhi, MD, PhD, and Ting Bao, MD, DABMA, MS, from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Xin Shelley Wang, MD, MPH, of the MD Anderson Cancer Center.
For the response perspective, CancerNetwork spoke with Linda Carlson, PhD, of the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. Carlson expanded on the work done by Zhi and her colleagues, emphasizing the importance of understanding reliability and validity. Carlson focused on the importance of the research topic, and the impact properly validated PROs can have on patients for the cancer care team.
https://www.cancernetwork.com/view/oncology-peer-review-on-the-go-recommending-patient-reported-outcomes-of-pain-for-cancer-care