Yesterday, in my usual scouring of the internet for the magic cure for all my ailments, I found an article about variability in cancer treatment and compliance with guidelines. Its an interesting read and how to make sure you are getting the right treatment with second opinions, good insurance coverage (plan ahead), yada yada yada.
And then I asked myself, what guidelines? I have always assumed that some little group of doctors got together and over a few beers put together their guidelines for treatment for each ailment. Little did I know that NCIC provides guidelines for treatment of all cancers. Some of them are even available in patient format - meaning readable in by normal people who did not go to medical school. You can see the treatment guidelines for stage I and II breast cancer here. And a list for all available patient guidelines by cancer type.
I cannot tell you how cool this is. How often have I wondered about my treatment plan, was it in compliance with guidelines - meaning did it give me the best possible treatment? It was a lot of good reading and I want to review it all.
Then if you go to the link for clinical practice guidelines, at the very bottom of the page is a link to all guidelines which takes you here for even more reading but it quickly becomes a bit technical because it is aimed at doctors. Feel free to start deciphering.
Finally, there was a link to the guidelines for other diseases - meaning not cancer - which are at the National Guideline Clearinghouse. These are uber-cool. I immediately looked up RA and will move on to fibromyalgia shortly.
So do not click the links unless you have a few hours to give yourself reassurance that your treatment plans are correct. They will suck you in quickly. I am going to work an hour late because I got a tiny bit side tracked.
Showing posts with label guidelines. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guidelines. Show all posts
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Saturday, April 4, 2015
New Guidelines for Life after Cancer
The Spring issue of Cure Magazine has an article on the new guidelines for life after cancer from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Sometimes I just want to say 'its about time'.
The article provides a nice overview and is a worthy read. But I do feel it is way late. Why does the medical profession feel so vertical? In the days of personalized medicine, isn't the patient's entire body supposed to be of concern? Each specialist only seems to deal with their little focus and not that of the entire patient.
A cancer diagnosis is not the same as a chicken pox diagnosis and leaves a life long impact. The new guidelines show a new way of thinking. If no one asks about it, how will it become known as an issue?
'To develop the new guidelines, the NCCN engaged experts in oncology from throughout the country. During the course of a year, they split into working groups—one for pain, for example, another for sleep issues—and reviewed the scientific literature on how to assess survivors’ problems and intervene in a meaningful way. Focus areas included:
To check for anxiety and depression, for example, the provider might ask:
There is a lot of reliance on the primary care physician who is supposed to care about the whole patient. At this point, I see my primary care annually and see all the specialists more frequently. While they focus on their part, its only when I get to my PCP, that my whole body and being gets discussed. And last year due to scheduling issues, I saw her nurse practitioner, who is nice, but not the same. I do like having my annual physical with my PCP.
But back to the new guidelines. I think its time for me to start making a list of my issues that relate to the focus areas to make sure I am prepared for my appointment... In July.
The article provides a nice overview and is a worthy read. But I do feel it is way late. Why does the medical profession feel so vertical? In the days of personalized medicine, isn't the patient's entire body supposed to be of concern? Each specialist only seems to deal with their little focus and not that of the entire patient.
A cancer diagnosis is not the same as a chicken pox diagnosis and leaves a life long impact. The new guidelines show a new way of thinking. If no one asks about it, how will it become known as an issue?
'To develop the new guidelines, the NCCN engaged experts in oncology from throughout the country. During the course of a year, they split into working groups—one for pain, for example, another for sleep issues—and reviewed the scientific literature on how to assess survivors’ problems and intervene in a meaningful way. Focus areas included:
- Anxiety and depression
- Cognitive dysfunction
- Exercise
- Fatigue
- Immunizations and prevention of infections
- Pain
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sleep disorders
To check for anxiety and depression, for example, the provider might ask:
- Do you often feel nervous or do you worry?
- Do you often feel sad or depressed?
- Have you lost interest in things you used to enjoy?'
There is a lot of reliance on the primary care physician who is supposed to care about the whole patient. At this point, I see my primary care annually and see all the specialists more frequently. While they focus on their part, its only when I get to my PCP, that my whole body and being gets discussed. And last year due to scheduling issues, I saw her nurse practitioner, who is nice, but not the same. I do like having my annual physical with my PCP.
But back to the new guidelines. I think its time for me to start making a list of my issues that relate to the focus areas to make sure I am prepared for my appointment... In July.
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Medical guidelines discovered
Yesterday, in my usual scouring of the internet for the magic cure for all my ailments, I found an article about variability in cancer treatment and compliance with guidelines. Its an interesting read and how to make sure you are getting the right treatment with second opinions, good insurance coverage (plan ahead), yada yada yada.
And then I asked myself, what guidelines? I have always assumed that some little group of doctors got together and over a few beers put together their guidelines for treatment for each ailment. Little did I know that NCIC provides guidelines for treatment of all cancers. Some of them are even available in patient format - meaning readable in by normal people who did not go to medical school. You can see the treatment guidelines for stage I and II breast cancer here. And a list for all available patient guidelines by cancer type.
I cannot tell you how cool this is. How often have I wondered about my treatment plan, was it in compliance with guidelines - meaning did it give me the best possible treatment? It was a lot of good reading and I want to review it all.
Then if you go to the link for clinical practice guidelines, at the very bottom of the page is a link to all guidelines which takes you here for even more reading but it quickly becomes a bit technical because it is aimed at doctors. Feel free to start deciphering.
Finally, there was a link to the guidelines for other diseases - meaning not cancer - which are at the National Guideline Clearinghouse. These are uber-cool. I immediately looked up RA and will move on to fibromyalgia shortly.
So do not click the links unless you have a few hours to give yourself reassurance that your treatment plans are correct. They will suck you in quickly. I am going to work an hour late because I got a tiny bit side tracked.
And then I asked myself, what guidelines? I have always assumed that some little group of doctors got together and over a few beers put together their guidelines for treatment for each ailment. Little did I know that NCIC provides guidelines for treatment of all cancers. Some of them are even available in patient format - meaning readable in by normal people who did not go to medical school. You can see the treatment guidelines for stage I and II breast cancer here. And a list for all available patient guidelines by cancer type.
I cannot tell you how cool this is. How often have I wondered about my treatment plan, was it in compliance with guidelines - meaning did it give me the best possible treatment? It was a lot of good reading and I want to review it all.
Then if you go to the link for clinical practice guidelines, at the very bottom of the page is a link to all guidelines which takes you here for even more reading but it quickly becomes a bit technical because it is aimed at doctors. Feel free to start deciphering.
Finally, there was a link to the guidelines for other diseases - meaning not cancer - which are at the National Guideline Clearinghouse. These are uber-cool. I immediately looked up RA and will move on to fibromyalgia shortly.
So do not click the links unless you have a few hours to give yourself reassurance that your treatment plans are correct. They will suck you in quickly. I am going to work an hour late because I got a tiny bit side tracked.
Sunday, January 4, 2015
New Guidelines for Life after Cancer
The Spring issue of Cure Magazine has an article on the new guidelines for life after cancer from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Sometimes I just want to say 'its about time'.
The article provides a nice overview and is a worthy read. But I do feel it is way late. Why does the medical profession feel so vertical? In the days of personalized medicine, isn't the patient's entire body supposed to be of concern? Each specialist only seems to deal with their little focus and not that of the entire patient.
A cancer diagnosis is not the same as a chicken pox diagnosis and leaves a life long impact. The new guidelines show a new way of thinking. If no one asks about it, how will it become known as an issue?
'To develop the new guidelines, the NCCN engaged experts in oncology from throughout the country. During the course of a year, they split into working groups—one for pain, for example, another for sleep issues—and reviewed the scientific literature on how to assess survivors’ problems and intervene in a meaningful way. Focus areas included:
To check for anxiety and depression, for example, the provider might ask:
There is a lot of reliance on the primary care physician who is supposed to care about the whole patient. At this point, I see my primary care annually and see all the specialists more frequently. While they focus on their part, its only when I get to my PCP, that my whole body and being gets discussed. And last year due to scheduling issues, I saw her nurse practitioner, who is nice, but not the same. I do like having my annual physical with my PCP.
But back to the new guidelines. I think its time for me to start making a list of my issues that relate to the focus areas to make sure I am prepared for my appointment... In July.
The article provides a nice overview and is a worthy read. But I do feel it is way late. Why does the medical profession feel so vertical? In the days of personalized medicine, isn't the patient's entire body supposed to be of concern? Each specialist only seems to deal with their little focus and not that of the entire patient.
A cancer diagnosis is not the same as a chicken pox diagnosis and leaves a life long impact. The new guidelines show a new way of thinking. If no one asks about it, how will it become known as an issue?
'To develop the new guidelines, the NCCN engaged experts in oncology from throughout the country. During the course of a year, they split into working groups—one for pain, for example, another for sleep issues—and reviewed the scientific literature on how to assess survivors’ problems and intervene in a meaningful way. Focus areas included:
- Anxiety and depression
- Cognitive dysfunction
- Exercise
- Fatigue
- Immunizations and prevention of infections
- Pain
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sleep disorders
To check for anxiety and depression, for example, the provider might ask:
- Do you often feel nervous or do you worry?
- Do you often feel sad or depressed?
- Have you lost interest in things you used to enjoy?'
There is a lot of reliance on the primary care physician who is supposed to care about the whole patient. At this point, I see my primary care annually and see all the specialists more frequently. While they focus on their part, its only when I get to my PCP, that my whole body and being gets discussed. And last year due to scheduling issues, I saw her nurse practitioner, who is nice, but not the same. I do like having my annual physical with my PCP.
But back to the new guidelines. I think its time for me to start making a list of my issues that relate to the focus areas to make sure I am prepared for my appointment... In July.
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