Samantha Siegel, Director of Cancer Survivorship at The Permanente Medical Group, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Oncology-Primary Care:
Deeply humbled to speak today at Mayo Clinic and Kaiser’s Co-Sponsored ‘Updates on Internal Medicine in Primary Care.’
A few high impact practices you can incorporate for your patients immediately (and without oncology focused training):
Keep at least annual visits, regardless of cancer stage. There’s always something to discuss, whether it’s metabolic consequences of cancer treatment, updating treatment history and any complications, vaccines, emotional health and supportive care, etc.
Adjust the ‘cadence of care’ if cancer therapy is expected to have cardiometabolic impacts. This means more frequent monitoring of:
- A1c
- lipids
- BP
- BMI
Check ASCO guidelines for common vaccines indicated or triggered by a cancer diagnosis that would not typically be given until later in life. (Ex: Shingrix, PCV 20, etc)
Confirm cancer diagnoses and surveillance strategies with oncology:
- what labs, scans or physical exams need to be done and when/for how long?
- what do we need to watch for? (example: signs of drug induced pneumonitis that might present in primary care for ‘cough/uri’)
Think about connecting with patients in the ‘in between spaces’ for providing basic education and trusted resources:
- send materials about biomarkers
- explain the process of staging
- ensure safe and healthy diet and lifestyle habits in all stages of cancer
- diagnosis specific organizations like Blood Cancer United (LLS)
Assess updated guidelines for genetic cancer screening.
-see ASCO-SSO or NCCN guidelines.”
Other articles featuring Samantha Siegel on OncoDaily.