CANCER Supplement on "Cancer-Related Fatigue: New Directions for Research"
We are currently preparing a supplement for the journal CANCER on the proceedings of the conference, "Cancer-Related Fatigue: New Directions for Research." This conference on fatigue was sponsored by the Pain Research Group and held at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in February of 2000. The objectives for this conference were to:
- identify needs for future research directions and clinical trials,
- identify assessment needs and guidelines for practice,
- describe current treatment options for patients with cancer-related fatigue,
- discuss possible etiologies for cancer-related fatigue,
- discuss the investigation of new compounds to reduce cancer-related fatigue.
Conference speakers will be invited to write papers based on their presentations and submit them to CANCER for publication in this special issue. Conference presentations focused on basic research on the science of fatigue and applied research on the management of cancer-related fatigue. Specific topics included: interferon-mediated fatigue, cancer-associated cachexia, the role of cytokines in cancer-related fatigue, and the effects of exercise on cancer-related fatigue.
Pain
Research Group Receives Funding for Symptom Research
| Title of grant: | Symptoms of Transplant Patients Near the End of Life |
| Principal Investigator: | Karen O. Anderson, Ph.D. |
| Funding agency: | National Cancer Institute |
| Period of support: | Four years |
Symptom Assessment IVR in Final Stages of Development
We are excited to announce that we are in the final developmental stages of an Interactive Voice Response System (IVR) for patient symptom assessment. Patients will use the IVR to rate the severity of their cancer-related symptoms on a 0-10 scale using the numbers on their touch-tone telephone. The IVR will address a variety of symptoms with the ultimate goal of having this symptom information communicated back to health care providers for prompt assessment and treatment. We are optimistic about the benefits that this system will have for our patients, and we are also excited about the research opportunities that will be created!
Publications In Press
Cleeland CS. Mendoza TR, Wang XS, Chou C, Harle MT, Morrissey M, Engstrom MC. Assessing symptom distress in cancer: The M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory. Cancer. In press 2000.
Cleeland CS. Cancer-Related Symptoms. Seminars in Radiation Oncology. In press 2000.
Anderson KO, Cleeland CS. Assessment of cancer-related symptoms. In K Nelson (Ed), Palliative Care for the Oncologist. Totowa, NJ:Humana Press, Inc. In press 2000.
Anderson KO, Syrjala KS, Cleeland CS. Assessment of cancer pain. In D Turk, R Melzack (Eds), Handbook of Pain Assessment - Second edition. New York: Guilford, In press 2000.