What an Integrative Oncology Survivorship Center Looks Like: Take a podcast tour with us and their awesome manager

In episode 32 of Everything Cancer, we delve into the impactful work of Prisma Health Cancer Institute's Center for Integrative Oncology Survivorship and Center for Cancer Prevention and Wellness.  

Jason King, Assistant Manager at the Center, takes us on a tour, explaining how they’ve expanded over the past 11 years with the growing recognition of the need for whole-person survivorship care. The center has grown from a small team of three into a bustling team of 33 dedicated, multidisciplinary members.

Their comprehensive program offers a wide range of services tailored to cancer survivors, from diagnosis through three to five years after treatment.

The Center focuses on whole-person care, addressing survivors' physical, emotional, and practical challenges. 

With services like oncology rehab, dietitian, sexual health, and social work visits, the Center is designed to meet whole-person survivors' needs during and after treatment. This integrative approach ensures that survivors receive the support they need to navigate life through and beyond cancer treatment.

A key highlight is the Center’s Lifetime Clinics, which serve as an "oncology home" for patients three to five years post-treatment. These clinics provide ongoing care, helping survivors manage long-term effects and maintain their health.

Jason discusses the importance of integrative oncology. By treating the whole person and collaborating with external resources, such as acupuncture and massage therapy, when needed, the Center ensures that survivors feel heard, supported, and empowered throughout their journey.

This episode is essential listening for anyone interested in how whole-person, survivor-centered care can significantly improve quality of life. Tune in to learn how Jason and his team are making a meaningful difference in the lives of cancer survivors by offering a comprehensive model of care that truly puts the patient first.

Jason's email address: jason.king2@prismahealth.org

Prisma Health Center for Integrative Oncology and Survivorship

Transcript

Everything Cancer (00:00)
I'm so sorry. I'm all thrown off. I meant to mute my microphone and I stopped the recording and luckily I can this can this meshes together very easily. So very, very easily, which is one of the advantages of using Riverside. Jason, can you define for us integrative oncology?

Jason A King (00:01)
That's okay.

and you stopped it. That's okay.

was good.

Yeah, I know there's specific definitions out there, but for me, working in the Center for Integrative Oncology and Survivorship, again, it's just integrative oncology to me is incorporating modalities, recommendations, and ideas to treat the whole patient.

is what I kind of feel. It's like, you know, some patients come in and they're interested in acupuncture, you know, I consider it an integrative therapy. are interested in massage therapy to help combat certain things about their cancer or their symptoms. So some are interested in herbs and supplements. And so we've had to hear our dieticians

and nurse practitioners in particular have had to really educate themselves on topics such as that. We've had to reach out in the community and to find external partners for those patients, because we don't offer in particular acupuncture here. But we had to reach out and find resources for patients. So it's kind

knowing that the patient is going to be looking for potentially alternative modalities to augment their survivorship or their treatment, and then knowing those and kind of building your toolkit. So to me, again, integrative oncology care is just treating the whole patient.

Everything Cancer (02:14)
Right, right, and it's integrating it with their traditional care and working as a team basically so that that patient can do as well as they can. right, being heard is so important. And yeah.

Jason A King (02:27)
and they feel cared for and heard.

Yeah, because it's important to them. You know, if they're having an issue and they really think of a certain, you know, modality or a certain, you know, thing would help them, then certainly you want to, you know, talk to them about it, you know, the safety or pros and cons depending on what it is, like safer herbs, for example, and stuff. So, but then, you know, yeah, just hearing the patient and help, helping them.

Everything Cancer (02:58)
Speaking of that, what do see looking back, say, five years, is the evolution of the patient being heard?

Jason A King (03:08)
I think in general, what I've seen over the past five years through my work here and also with, I think we've talked before, I've worked with the Academy of Oncology and Nurse and Patient Navigators on the survivorship committee. And just over the past five years, I think there's been a huge movement in healthcare and in organizations to really create a survivorship programming

patients. There's just been a larger move toward a shift toward that. You know, going to the conferences and talking with different peers and stuff, you've really seen it, which I think is excellent. Because beforehand, and even when we started to develop our program back in 2012, luckily, we had a physician champion, which is our administrator, to really help move us forward and see the benefit to our patients.

And even that's hard when you work in either a large or small organization. So I've been very excited to see a bigger movement toward patient survivorship and building of programs and teaching of survivorship navigators. It's been great to see that happen in the past five years.

Everything Cancer (04:27)
I'm very passionate about survivorship care, as you know. And that's one of the reasons why this podcast is here is first to hear the survivor voice and to hear about resources that people can reach out to and to people feel more empowered to speak out and look for resources. mean, that's so what do you what's your future vision for your clinic?

Jason A King (04:30)
Yeah.

Exactly.

Everything Cancer (04:57)
and survivorship care.

Jason A King (05:01)
That's a good question.

Everything Cancer (05:06)
If you want to come back to it, go ahead.

Jason A King (05:06)
I've often tried to think about how else we could get larger and like what are we not meeting? Certainly one thing I think I would bring back that we had at one time was music therapy. It was one offering that we had for patients. At one time we were supposed to have a larger cancer institute building that would be

just this huge center that really incorporated integrative therapy and had massage therapy on site, acupuncture on site, music therapy on site, pet therapy on site. That would be awesome to see that happen in the future. just survivorship itself, you know, there's been movement, as you know, with legislation.

Everything Cancer (05:54)
Mm -hmm.

Jason A King (06:09)
toward the Survivorship Act that's going on and trying to address gaps in survivorship care, which I think it's great. Because we see that. I know you'll still always have, and some of the smaller established organizations, because it all comes down to finances and stuff. How do you?

how do you build programs with and how do you staff them and how do you educate them. Luckily for us too, we had a huge philanthropic support, which was great. So if people can, you know, somehow utilize that or get the organization to do that just to help build programs, I just think it would be beneficial for patients.

Everything Cancer (07:04)
Absolutely. I would love to us shift or have medical necessity as a determinant, but also wellness necessity. And really step back and look at that from a long -term planning standpoint, because I think if we did truly look at that as

Jason A King (07:12)
Mm -hmm.

Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (07:26)
from a payer standpoint and a healthcare system standpoint, we would probably see our costs of care drop precipitously after a couple years of investment and our patients and ourselves be a lot happier and do much better. But it would take a big gulp and a lot of investment because that's gonna take some risk up front to do

Jason A King (07:28)
Mm -hmm.

Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (07:52)
But I would love to see that because I think just from what I've seen of the small examples, people do so much better when they really understand investing in themselves. When you look at the studies with yoga and mind -body connection and things like that and really investing in that and truly paying for acupuncture instead of having copays that make it really difficult.

Jason A King (08:01)
Mm -hmm.

Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (08:18)
to me. So if a survivor does not, and you were talking about smaller cancer centers, if a survivor does not currently have access to an integrative oncology program or survivorship program, how do you suggest that they might reach out to kind of either find that type of program or gather those?

Jason A King (08:27)
Mm -hmm.

Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (08:43)
gather credible resources to themselves, find credible providers to see.

Jason A King (08:47)
Mm -hmm.

I would have them, and I know not all have nurse navigators, but I would ask their oncologist or nurse navigator if they have one to see if they know any local practitioners in the area, if they're looking for certain integrative therapies that they have checked out. I would have them look for local organizations such as their local cancer alliance to see what they have. know ours, we plug a lot of

survivors into and they help from everything from transportation to helping with certain financial needs to nutrition needs to counseling. Not everyone will have a local cancer society or alliance, but check into that. And then, other online organizations such as Cancer Support Community that we mentioned before. And a lot of these

know, online support programs will have links to others, which is great. So, I know sometimes you have to be careful. People tend to go into a rabbit hole, you know, when they're looking for different things online. But things like cancer .org, know, Cancer Support Community, Livestrong, you know, some of those are the more reputable organizations that'll have links to other sites.

Everything Cancer (10:03)
Yeah.

So I would definitely look at your local cancer support organization like you were saying. That shared experience is invaluable. oftentimes they offer both virtual and in -person services and or meetings. And just dip your toe in the water at least once and try. Because it does make a huge difference in terms of.

Jason A King (10:22)
Mm -hmm.

Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (10:44)
how you perceive things and not feeling alone in your journey. Plus you do hear about other, they can, the other people there that have found resources can clue you in to the people they have discovered.

Jason A King (10:48)
Mm -hmm.

Exactly.

Everything Cancer (10:58)
and those national organizations that you were talking about, Jason, are exceptional. Cancer .org is very accessible, live strong like you were talking about. They are both great organizations. Is there anything that we haven't touched upon that is important to you to discuss?

Jason A King (11:17)
I just go back to a topic, you know, what we had discussed before about how we would kind of want to see things change. Because I was thinking about as you were talking, you know, to see the future of survivorship that would have planning for the patient. And I know I think there's legislation about, you know, going on about this too. But, you know, to have a plan for the patient that does include

you know, exercise and wellness and education through their cancer journey, because we know again from studies that people do better, you know, with certain interventions, with support, you know, with navigation. That is what I wish really the trajectory would, you know, aim for in survivorship.

Everything Cancer (12:14)
Yes, I agree. I would also like, and I know you're involved in it and

your committee's involved in it and CSPN, the Cancer Survivorship Provider Network is involved in it on establishing pathways for survivorship care so that it's not just the patient or the individual healthcare system such as yours, the patient who can advocate for themselves or the cancer center that has the resources, but that there is a mapped out plan for expert survivorship care.

Jason A King (12:45)
Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (12:54)
that is if it's not immediately accessible in that person's healthcare plan, at least what type of specialist to refer that person to so that anybody can, any provider can refer to that and get that person the help that they need and the resources they need or at least put it in the right direction. I feel like so many times we have people that

Jason A King (12:54)
Mm -hmm.

Everything Cancer (13:24)
successfully complete treatment but then are left as we know holding the bag with a lot of symptoms and that's where we're trying to get past is get a good quality of life established and feeling really good and having wellness, having health.

Jason A King (13:27)
Mm -hmm.

Exactly. Establish that follow -up care. So many times the survivors are used to seeing that provider on routine basins. It's like their treatment ends and they're like, they feel abandoned. So trying to establish, whether it's just a nurse navigator doing it in your clinic or you have an actual survivorship program, establishing that follow -up care for the patient and having touch points along

Everything Cancer (13:42)
Yes, yes, that's.

Jason A King (14:08)
timeline to follow up with those patients.

Everything Cancer (14:11)
Right, so having a, exactly, I agree 100%. So Jason, thank you so much for your time today. I really appreciate it. I know your time is valuable and thank you for everything you do and for the expertise of you and everybody that works in your clinic. You make big differences for the people that come see you. Thank you, Jason.

Jason A King (14:31)
Thank you, it's been a pleasure.