Head and Neck Cancers: A 2-Part Comprehensive Course With Nurse-Centric Case Discussions

Sponsored by:

Target Audience

This activity has been designed to meet the educational needs of oncology nurses who care for patients with head and neck cancers.

Purpose

To educate nurses on the latest treatment and management strategies for patients with head and neck cancers.

Program Overview

Head and neck cancers (HNC) are a complex collection of malignancies. They are differentiated, based on histology and tumor location, and many require unique treatment strategies utilizing multimodal, comprehensive, and interdisciplinary approaches. Two consecutive educational programs will provide oncology nurses with a comprehensive understanding of HNC treatment and patient management. HNC 101 is an introductory program that will define the different types of HNC and will include disease etiology, staging and diagnostics. Several case presentations will illustrate the role of various treatment modalities, including surgery, induction chemotherapy, chemoradiotherapy, sequential therapies, and targeted therapies. Nurses from around the country have been invited to submit patient cases to be discussed by the expert presenter and attendees. HNC 201 will depict continued follow-up on patient cases from HNC 101, however the focus will be on nursing management of treatment- and disease-related side effects with emphasis on the multidisciplinary approach to care along the treatment trajectory.

Learning Objectives

HNC 101: An Introduction to Head and Neck Cancers
Upon completion of this program, participants should be better able to:

• Identify the various types of squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck, their etiology, incidence, and presentation
• Explain the role, rationale, and types of surgical interventions
• Outline an overview of standard and emerging radiation therapy options including chemoradiotherapy
• Identify recent clinical data on the effectiveness of induction, concomitant, and sequential chemotherapy
• Describe the current and emerging role of targeted therapies

HNC 201:Treatment of Head and Neck Cancers

• Discuss postsurgery palliative care for patients
• Identify chemoradiotherapy and induction chemotherapy side effects and their management optimal nursing management of dermatologic side effects caused by EGFR inhibitors
• Recall optimal nursing management of dermatologic side effects caused by EGFR inhibitors
• Specify the interdisciplinary role of radiology, speech pathology, surgery, and medical oncology in HNC treatment

Chairperson

Colleen M. O’Leary, RN, MSN, OCN^®
Northwestern Memorial Hospital

This activity is sponsored by:

This activity is supported by independent educational grants from sanofi-aventis U.S., Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and ImClone Systems Incorporated.