Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy: An Experimental Treatment for Advanced Melanoma

Recent news has emerged on what looks to be a promising therapy for increasing outcomes and survival in patients with advanced stage melanoma: TIL (Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocyte) Therapy.  Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes are immune cells (made up of both B and T cells) that are found in solid tumors fighting the good fight, but in some patients these fighter cells can get overwhelmed by tumor cells. Enter experimental TIL…

Posted on Jan. 30, 2023 in From Our Perspective

CTR Coding Break – 2023 Overview of Changes

This month’s CTR Coding Break topic is “The 2023 Overview of Changes”. 2023 is a big year for major changes to nearly all manuals utilized for the abstraction of cancer cases by State, CoC and/or SEER reporting facilities. In this presentation, we discuss the primary seven manuals: AJCC 9th Editions, Grade Manual, Solid Tumor Rules, ICD-O-3.2, STORE Manual, SSDI Manual and the SEER Program Coding and…

Posted on Jan. 23, 2023 in Oncology Coding Break

New Year, New You? Important Tips To Consider Before Deciding On Bariatric Surgery

How to plan and prepare for weight loss surgery. It’s that time of year when millions of people make changes to better their health. For many, those changes include bariatric surgery. According to The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), there were 256,000 bariatric—or weight loss—surgeries performed in 2019.   However, potential patients may be unaware that planning and preparing for weight loss surgery can…

Posted on Jan. 16, 2023 in From Our Perspective

Looking Closer at Your Benefits

When you think about benefits offered by your employer, what comes to mind? Health insurance and paid time off? Tax advantages and free memberships? Either way, what’s important is that you take a closer look into these “benefits” so you don’t miss out on saving yourself money and time! Many health plans cover more than trips to your doctor’s office and prescriptions. You may also have…

Posted on Jan. 9, 2023 in From Our Perspective