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Medical and Health Content on cancer.org

The American Cancer Society has a team of healthcare and editorial professionals who work together to keep all cancer information on cancer.org current with the most up-to-date information available.  Our dedicated Medical and Health Content Team works to ensure our information is based in science, relevant, and current. Our website is updated regularly to maintain its accuracy. 

The American Cancer Society is proud that cancer.org is known as a trusted source for cancer information, and our goal is to provide support and guidance for the cancer questions you have. The medical information is written, reviewed, and/or edited by American Cancer Society medical editors (medical doctors and oncology nurses). Additionally, medical review and content contribution are provided through a collaboration with the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The evidence-based information is developed and updated based on credible sources, such as current editions of standard medical and nursing textbooks, scientific articles from peer-reviewed journals, and clinical guidelines from the American Cancer Society and other major medical or public health organizations. This rigorous process ensures the information is accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

American Cancer Society medical information is copyrighted material. For reprint requests, please see our Content Usage Policy.

Cancer information from the American Cancer Society is written, edited, and regularly reviewed by the American Cancer Society Medical and Health Content Team. Our team is made up of medical doctors and oncology nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as editors and translators with extensive experience in medical writing.


Chief Patient Officer
Arif Kamal, MD, MBA, MHS

Senior Vice President, Medical & Health Content
Megan Wessel, MPH

Medical Editor Team

Strategic Director 
Tracy Wyant, DNP, AOCN, GERO-BC, EBP-C, CPPS

Senior Medical Editor
Qin Zhang, MD

Medical Editor 
Rick Alteri, MD 

Associate Medical Editors 
Barbara Lubejko, MS, RN 
Lois Merrick, DNP, MSN, BMTCN

Medical Content Management & Promotion Team

Strategic Director 
Maria Cabrera, MPH 

Project Managers 
Vanika Jordan, MSPUB 
Paige Schwartz
Madilyn Tortat

Medical Content Development & Production Team

Managing Director
HaiVy Thompson

Managing Editors 
Kirsten Eidsmoe 
Brittany Lovely

Copy Editors/Writers 
Beverly Greene 
Talia Henkle, PhD 
Allison Vrbova 

SEO Editor 
Rachael Mason

Production Manager 
Christina Thomas, MPH

Production Designer 
Nikolas Martinez

Spanish Translator
Rafael Delfín-Davis

ACS Reviewers/Subject Matter Experts

William Dahut, MD
Chief Scientific Officer

Angela Giaquinto, PhD
Associate Scientist II, Surveillance Research

Laura Makaroff, DO
Senior Vice President, Cancer Prevention

Marjorie Lynn McCullough, SCD, RD
Senior Scientific Director, Epidemiology Research

Bonny Morris, PhD, MSPH, RN
Vice President, Navigation

Alpa Patel, PhD
Senior Vice President, Population Science

Rebecca Siegel, PhD
Senior Scientific Director, Surveillance Research

Robert Smith, PhD
Senior Vice President, Cancer Screening

Kristen Sullivan, MPH, MS
Director, Cancer Wellness

The American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) are collaborating to make it simpler for patients to find authoritative cancer information by creating a single, online resource. ASCO and its oncologists are contributing and vetting content, including on breaking and emerging cancer issues. The organizations are also working together to share information through podcasts and new innovative approaches.

About ASCO

Founded in 1964, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) is committed to the principle that knowledge conquers cancer. Together with the Association for Clinical Oncology, ASCO represents nearly 50,000 oncology professionals who care for people living with cancer. Through research, education, and promotion of high quality, equitable patient care, ASCO works to conquer cancer and create a world where cancer is prevented or cured, and every survivor is healthy. Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, supports ASCO by funding groundbreaking research and education across cancer’s full continuum. Learn more at  www.ASCO.org.


Editor in Chief, ASCO Patient Information

Jyoti D. Patel, MD, FASCO
Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University

 

Specialty Editors & Advisory Panel

Associate Editors

Charu Aggarwal, MD, MPH, FASCO
Lung Cancer
University of Pennsylvania

Andrew S. Artz, MD, MS, FASCO
Leukemia
City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center

Lan Coffman, MD, PhD
Gynecologic Cancers
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

Petros Grivas, MD, PhD
Genitourinary (GU) Cancers
University of Washington

Norah Lynn Henry, MD, PhD, FASCO
Breast Cancer
University of Michigan

Fay J. Hlubocky, PhD, MA, FASCO
Psychosocial Oncology
University of Chicago

Vicki L. Keedy, MD, MSCI, FASCO
Sarcoma
Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Richard T. Lee, MD, FASCO
Palliative Care
City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center 

Sagar Lonial MD, FACP
Myeloma
Emory University

Allison Magnuson, DO, MS
Geriatric Oncology
University of Rochester

Daniel A. Mulrooney, MD, MS
Pediatric Oncology
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Manali I. Patel, MD, MPH, MS, FASCO
Health Equity
Stanford University

Cristina P. Rodriguez, MD
Head & Neck Cancers
University of Washington / Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

Roy E. Strowd, III, MD, MEd, MS
Central Nervous System Tumors
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center

Katy K. Tsai, MD
Melanoma & Skin Cancer
University of California San Francisco

Matthew B. Yurgelun, MD, FASCO
Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancers
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 

Jaffer Ajani, MD
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Lynne Brophy, MSN, PGMT-BC, APRN-CNS, AOCN
The Ohio State University

Robert Daly, MD, MBA
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Bassel El-Rayes, MD
O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB

Tomas Garzon-Muvdi, MD, MSc
Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University

Barbara L. Grant, MS, RDN, CSO, FAND
Saint Alphonsus Cancer Institute

Vivek Gurudutt, MD
North Atlanta ENT & Allergy

Michael Mair, RN, BSN
Dignity Health Cancer Institute

Steven Maron, MD, MSc
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Laura Marshall, BSN, RN
Independent Consultant

Holli Martinez, MSN, FNP-BC, ACHPN, FPCN
University of Utah Health

Gretchen  A. McNally, PhD, ANP-BC, AOCNP
Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital

Jeffrey Olson, MD
Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University

Ruth O'Regan, MD
University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center 

Lindsay L. Peterson, MD
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

Evelyn A. Reynolds, MD
Mayo Clinic  

Adan Rios, MD
University of Texas Health Science Center (UTHealth) McGovern Medical School

Carlos Rodriguez-Galindo, MD
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Victor Santana, MD
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Steven A. Schroeder, MD
Smoking Cessation Leadership Center - University of California, San Francisco

Daniel Mark Siegel MD, MS
SUNY Downstate and Brooklyn VA Hospital

Randy F. Sweis, MD
University of Chicago