Publications by authors named "Joanne Meng"
Caring for cancer patients is generally considered very rewarding work, but it can also be stressful and demanding. Therefore, it is important for oncology healthcare professionals to feel satisfied with their work environment in order to provide the best care possible. An ethics-approved 61-item staff satisfaction survey was developed in-house to gain insights regarding workplace satisfaction among all staff at The Ottawa Hospital Cancer Center.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: RTOG 0617 compared standard-dose (SD; 60 Gy) versus high-dose (HD; 74 Gy) radiation with concurrent chemotherapy and determined the efficacy of cetuximab for stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Methods: The study used a 2 × 2 factorial design with radiation dose as 1 factor and cetuximab as the other, with a primary end point of overall survival (OS).
Results: Median follow-up was 5.
Background: The purpose of this analysis is to evaluate the effect of institutional accrual volume on clinical outcomes among patients receiving chemoradiation for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) on a phase III trial.
Methods: Patients with LA-NSCLC were randomly assigned to 60 Gy or 74 Gy radiotherapy (RT) with concurrent carboplatin/paclitaxel +/- cetuximab on NRG Oncology RTOG 0617. Participating institutions were categorized as low-volume centers (LVCs) or high-volume centers (HVCs) according to the number of patients accrued (≤3 vs > 3).
Background: We aimed to compare overall survival after standard-dose versus high-dose conformal radiotherapy with concurrent chemotherapy and the addition of cetuximab to concurrent chemoradiation for patients with inoperable stage III non-small-cell lung cancer.
Methods: In this open-label randomised, two-by-two factorial phase 3 study in 185 institutions in the USA and Canada, we enrolled patients (aged ≥ 18 years) with unresectable stage III non-small-cell lung cancer, a Zubrod performance status of 0-1, adequate pulmonary function, and no evidence of supraclavicular or contralateral hilar adenopathy. We randomly assigned (1:1:1:1) patients to receive either 60 Gy (standard dose), 74 Gy (high dose), 60 Gy plus cetuximab, or 74 Gy plus cetuximab.
Purpose: This clinical study was designed to prospectively evaluate the acute and moderately-late cardiac and lung toxicities of intensity modulated radiation therapy delivered by helical tomotherapy (IMRT-HT) for locoregional breast radiation treatment including the internal mammary nodes (IMN).
Material/methods: 30 patients with stage III breast cancers have been accrued in this study. All patients received adjuvant chemotherapy.
Radiotherapy is an effective but underutilized treatment modality for cancer patients. We decided to investigate the factors influencing radiotherapy referral among family physicians in our region. A 30-item survey was developed to determine palliative radiotherapy knowledge and factors influencing referral.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To assess family physicians' views on common indications for palliative radiotherapy and to determine whether this influences patient referral.
Methods And Materials: A 30-item questionnaire evaluating radiotherapy knowledge and training developed at the Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre (ORCC) was mailed to a random sample of 400 family physicians in eastern Ontario, Canada. The completed surveys were collected and analyzed, and form the basis of this study.