A Weighty Matter

The cover story of the July/August issue of Oncology Nursing News^® explores the intersection between obesity, cancer, and underserved patients.

Obesity can cause health complications among the general population of the United States, but patients with cancer who are obese face additional health risks. Some rural and minority populations face further challenges, such as lack of access to care and healthy food, as well as unhealthy food-related regional or cultural traditions. In this issue’s cover article, experts weigh in on how nurses can have a great impact on patients’ awareness of their risks, as well as how to communicate steps to take to reduce them.

Oncology nurses can play many roles in the healthcare ecosystem to support patients with cancer. When one nurse experienced the effects of chronic medical challenges, she channeled her expertise toward writing about nursing instead. Read this month’s feature story about Ashley Hay and her journey from clinical nurse to freelance writer. Editor in Chief Lisa Schulmeister reviews the practice of scalp cooling to reduce hair loss, and how it is becoming more common, in her “Nurse’s Notes” column. Another article covers the use of placebo and its growing use in cancer clinical trials.

All of the articles in the Clinical Insights section focus on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy research and practice. Read about the potentially game-changing preclinical development of off-the-shelf CAR T-cells that don’t require personalization and may be able to be mass-produced. Other articles highlight studies in myeloma, lymphoma, and leukemia treatment with this therapy, and review the role of nurses who care for patients receiving it.

As always, we strive to bring you practice-based information that can help you stay current in the field of oncology nursing. We hope you find this issue useful and enlightening.

Mike Hennessy, Sr

Chairman and CEO