Improving the Utility of Value Tools in Cancer Care for Patients

NCCN will host its annual patient advocacy summit on December 9 in Washington, DC to explore gaps in current value tools, as well as patient definitions of value.

News provided by

National Comprehensive Cancer Network

Nov 30, 2016, 11:00 ET

FORT WASHINGTON, Pa., Nov. 30, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Across the oncology field, there is a mounting pressure to improve quality and define value of cancer care from a patient perspective. This need to define value is recognized by key stakeholders in oncology, a variety of whom have begun to develop value tools and calculators to determine the most valuable treatment options. Intended for use in the shared decision-making process, these tools must reflect the most accurate and timely treatment options and evaluate value based on individual patients' needs and preferences. Therefore, it is imperative that these tools not only provide information to help patients make decisions regarding their cancer care, but that they do so in a way that is easily attainable and understandable for patients. Despite current innovative tools and initiatives around value, there still exists a significant need for additional patient-centered value tools.

On Friday, December 9, 2016, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network^® (NCCN^®), as part of its Oncology Policy Program, will convene its annual Patient Advocacy Summit at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. This year's summit, Value Tools for Patients in Cancer Care, will highlight the findings and recommendations of NCCN's multi-stakeholder Value Tools for Patients in Cancer Care Working Group, which included patients, patient advocates, clinicians, social workers, and financial planners. The summit will bring together these stakeholder groups, as well as payers, industry, and government representatives, to explore how patients define value in cancer care; and discuss the gaps, needs, and utility of value tools for patients.

Moderated by Clifford Goodman, PhD, The Lewin Group, the summit will commence with a Working Group report delivered by Alan Balch, PhD, Patient Advocate Foundation, and Lisa Lentz, MPH, NCCN, followed by a panel discussion of the gaps in current tools and how to address these gaps in decision-making preparedness. The first panel discussion, Gaps of Value Tools for Patients in Cancer Care, features the following experts:

Alan Balch, PhD, Patient Advocate Foundation
Jack Gentile, Harborside Press, Patient Perspective
Bruce Gould, MD, Northwest Georgia Oncology Centers
Barbara Jagels, RN, MHA, CPHQ, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance
Michael B. Lawing, Kidney Cancer Association, Cancer Advocate
Laura Porter, MD, Colon Cancer Alliance, Patient Perspective

The second half of the summit will focus on the utility of value tools for patients, beginning with a demonstration of a Breast Cancer Surgical Decision Support iPad Tool by Sandhya Pruthi, MD, of Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, followed by an expert panel discussion titled, Understanding Principles and Parameters of Value Tools for Patients in Oncology. The second roundtable will cover the challenges to and feasibility of widespread adoption of value tools, as well as how to adopt standard processes with individual needs of the patient. The following experts will participate in the panel:

Kate Chenok, MBA, Chenok Associates
James Randolph (Randy) Hillard, MD, Michigan State University, Patient Perspective
Linda House, RN, BSN, MSM, Cancer Support Community
Sandhya Pruthi, MD, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center
Scott Shortenhaus, Lilly Oncology, PACE Program
Beckie VonRuden, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Patient Perspective

On-site demonstrations of the following value tools will be available to attendees:

NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines^®) with NCCN Evidence Blocks™
National Health Council's Patient-Centered Value Model Rubric
Patient Advocate Foundation's Consumer-Based Cancer Care Value Index
The University of Chicago Medical Center's COST Tool

For more information or to register, visit NCCN.org/policy.

About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network^® (NCCN^®), a not-for-profit alliance of 27 of the world'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; University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center, Madison, WI; Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville, TN; and Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital, New Haven, CT.