More than 200 volunteer leaders, committee members, and American College of Surgeons (ACS) staff gathered in person in Rosemont, IL, and virtually March 22–23 for the 2022 ACS Cancer Programs Annual Meeting. In addition to participating in multiple committee meetings, attendees joined general sessions on topics including cancer staging and synoptic reporting, using the “patients’ lens” to restructure standards, and quality improvement initiatives. In addition, ACS Cancer Programs recognized the Commission on Cancer’s (CoC’s) 100-year anniversary.
“As medical director of the seven cancer programs, I see each program as being unique. Each one makes a special contribution to improving cancer care,” said ACS Cancer Programs Medical Director Heidi Nelson, MD, FACS. “And yet, when we meet and work together as we did during the March meetings, I see that we are better together; the sum is much greater than the individual parts.”
Cancer Programs
The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Editorial, Education and Promotions, Implementation, and Membership and Bylaws committees met to discuss recent accomplishments and plans for the coming year.
“The AJCC staging system provides a powerful tool for optimum cancer care,” said AJCC Chair Robert K. Brookland, MD, FACR, FACRO. “Bringing leaders together and in person was critical to best identify our challenges and opportunities as we move forward.”
Members of the National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer (NAPRC), Accreditation, Education, Executive, and Quality Committee reviewed many accomplishments, including growth in the number and variety of programs, refinement of standards, and published peer-reviewed data attesting to the value of the NAPRC.
“We will integrate this information as we enter our inaugural reaccreditation year,” explained NAPRC Chair Steven D. Wexner, MD, PhD(Hon), FACS, FRCSEng, FRCSEd. “We are eager to collaborate with other ACS Cancer Programs, to share best practices with them, and to work together to improve cancer care.”
The Commission on Cancer Accreditation, Advocacy, Education, Member Organization Steering, and Quality Integration committees met over the course of the 2 days. CoC Chair Timothy W. Mullett, MD, MBA, FACS, said they believed the meetings represented a much-needed reunion for CoC colleagues.
“We were able to review progress with the successful Return to Screening Quality Improvement Initiative and Clinical Study,” said Dr. Mullett. “We also introduced the new Just ASK Tobacco Assessment in Cancer Programs Quality Improvement Initiative and Clinical Study. We anticipate that most programs in the country will benefit from this project. Additionally, we reviewed the commission’s progress with Pediatric Cancer Programs, network settings, and explored the value of rural cancer programs as a mechanism to impact disparities in cancer care in this special population.”
The Cancer Surgery Standards Program (CSSP) Content Development and Education Committee also met.
“Our program members thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to meet and interact in person,” said CSSP Chair Matthew H.G. Katz, MD, FACS. “The group is well-positioned to integrate with all the cancer programs to drive forward synoptic operative reporting and improve the quality of surgical care nationwide.”
In addition, the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC) Advocacy and Outreach, Education and Dissemination, Quality Improvement and Information Technology, and Standards and Accreditation Committees met.
“We were able to convey to the other cancer programs the importance and unique nature of sculpting the accreditation process and standards to reflect the patient journey,” said NAPBC Chair Scott H. Kurtzman, MD, FACS. “Going forward, we will double down on utilizing the implementation process and quality improvement methodologies in everything we do.”
Dr. Nelson noted that a common theme heard across all the programs was the need for standardization, which is essential to the work of improving quality of cancer care.
“We all accept accreditation standards, staging standards, and coding standards for the registries and National Cancer Database,” said Dr. Nelson. “We are now starting a new journey, that of standardizing point-of-care documentation of surgical care. It will be an impactful, if long, journey.”
