The Texas Society
of Clinical Oncology –
Advancing Cancer Care.
“There is nothing more important to me as
a physician than your cancer treatment.
I’ve been in practice for nearly two decades
and have had the privilege of telling many
patients that there is life beyond cancer.
As president of The Center for Cancer
and Blood Disorders, I want to lead by
example, practicing a firm belief
that all patients should receive the finest medical
care available, with the same concern and
compassion as a cherished
member of the family.”
Ray Page, D.O., Ph.D.
President and Medical Oncologist
The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders
PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
To learn more about cancer care issues or to consult
with a physician about a cancer diagnosis, contact us at
817.596.0637.
OCTOBER 2015
Schedule appointments by calling
817-596-0637 or online at
www.thecentertx.com
As President of the Texas Society of Clinical Oncology
(TxSCO) I had the pleasure of leading our annual conference in Austin in September. In 2014, I was the Chair
of ASCO’s State Affiliate Council leading all 50 State
Oncology Societies, so I am relieved to now be able to
concentrate my efforts just on the great state of Texas.
The TxSCO meeting had representation from virtually
all the academic oncology programs, including M.D.
Anderson, Scott & White, U.T. Southwestern, Baylor,
Lubbock and the military program in San Antonio. Likewise, community oncology practices from across Texas,
both large and small, including Texas Oncology (Austin)
and The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders were
engaged.
We addressed many of the challenges of providing
quality cancer care for the people of Texas. We did a
deep dive into the new legislative policies voted into law
by our US Congress, including the Medicare Access
and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) which
encourages a number of novel Alternative Payment
Models (APMs) that will pay oncologists for the quality of
patient care, not necessarily the number of procedures.
The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders has been a
national pioneer and thought leader in developing APMs.
We also discussed at great length about Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) which arose out of
Obamacare and their impact on oncology practices as
patient populations can be steered by narrow networks.
We all desire that cancer patients continue to have the
opportunity to get outstanding cancer care close to home
(such as Weatherford, Mineral Wells and Granbury)
rather that driving across the Metroplex to get cancer
treatment through an ACO preferred provider.
We learned about new and better ways to implement
and advance cancer survivorship programs which have
been modeled and tested by our practice for community
oncology, at M.D. Anderson for institutions, and through
UTSW Moncrief for the underserved and rural patients.
We discussed the amazing ability of our practices to
work with stakeholders to continue an efficient and safe
chemotherapy drug delivery system that is potentially
threatened by more and more legislative administrative
burdens. We also studied the ethical and prudent use of
expensive molecular diagnostic tests that can personalize cancer treatments.
Lastly, I was most proud and excited that we had
a record number of oncology fellows in training (24)
who presented their scientific research findings at our
meeting. In my group, Dr. Nichole Bartosh helped lead
a career development program for our Texas fellows
coming out of training.
After meeting all the young new oncologists, like our
very own Dr. Nicole Bartosh, I have great confidence
that the future of cancer care in Texas looks very bright!!!
They will carry the baton well!
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