“Caring for Every Patient, Learning From Every Patient”: From Town Halls to the ASCO Annual Meeting

May 29, 2019
Greg Guthrie, ASCO staff

This year’s Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) starts on Friday, May 31. In this video, ASCO President Monica M. Bertagnolli, MD, FACS, FASCO, talks about how her relationships with her patients helped develop an admiration for the invaluable role people with cancer play in the research that improves cancer care.

A full-text transcript is available.

It was Dr. Bertagnolli’s patients who inspired her presidential theme:share on twitterCaring for every patient, Learning from every patient.” To put action to these words, Dr. Bertagnolli ventured to local communities to speak with patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals. From Massachusetts to Ohio, Texas to Montana, and South Dakota to Puerto Rico, she and other ASCO members listened to patients’ experiences and worries. At the same time, they learned more about the real-world challenges that exist in getting quality cancer care. These sessions were called “ASCO in the Community: Listening and Learning from Our Patients.” Personal perspectives and photos from these sessions can be found in a special section on Cancer.Net.

Dr. Bertagnolli’s presidential theme is also the theme of this year’s ASCO Annual Meeting. The research that will be presented at the meeting underscores the meaning of her theme. Not only does the research done in clinical trials advance and improve the care for people with cancer, but it also demonstrates the value in purposefully listening to and engaging with patients during their care.

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