Following ASCO

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is holding its' annual meeting in Chicago from June 1-June 5. This is a gigantic annual gathering of physicians, scientists, researchers, pharmacy people, advocates, and anyone else with an interest in cancer and cancer research. As a cancer patient or survivor, you likely have some interest in what may be presented at this meeting and should have some awareness of likely news coverage.

Since this is the biggest cancer event in the world, there is always a lot of media attention. What can be problematic is how some of the news may be presented. If you see headlines that scream something about Cure for cancer found or Cancer will be eradicated by 2030, slow down your enthusiasm. While we can surely wish this were true, it is probably a lot of hype about a potentially exciting finding--but, sadly, not a finding that will remove cancer from our world. Be prepared to hear from friends or family who may have caught such a news story and can't wait to share their excitement with you. I feel a little badly about coming across as a major cynic here, but, as the saying goes: This is not my first rodeo, and I have heard too much later disappointment from people who believed everything that they read.

There will be ways to follow the meeting on line and receive constant updates. One good one is OncLive: https://www.onclive.com/conference-coverage/asco-2018

ASCO's website will also have all the important news: https://am.asco.org/