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
Senior Associate Medical Editor
Heather Mackey, DNP, ANP-BC, AOCN
Associate Medical Editors
Barbara Lubejko, MS, RN
Lois Merrick, DNP, MSN, BMTCN Katie Beth Roux, MSN, APRN, FNP-C
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
Brooke Worster, MD, FACP
Thomas Jefferson University