July 2019 – Volume 37 – Issue 3

This issue’s President’s Perspective column asks a thought-provoking question, “What key points, outside of the basics of exercise testing and prescription for Individuals with cancer, would I like my audience to take home with them”? You will have to do your summer reading to find out Steve’s responses to that question. This issue continues with one of the primary objectives of the journal to translate evidence to practice with an EDGE Clinical Outcome measure systematic review across all cancer diagnoses and a podcasts on the journal home page, titled “Academy of Oncologic Physical Therapy EDGE Task Force: A Systematic Review of Measures of Balance in Adult Cancer Survivors.” The next research report is a report on the “Development and Evaluation of the Breast Cancer Online Rehabilitation (BRECOR) Program for Self-managed Upper-Body Rehabilitation for Women With Breast Cancer.” Next up is a first in the journal, a research report on an animal study with implications for exercise during chemotherapy, titled, “The Effects of Wheel Running on Skeletal Muscle Function During and Following Doxorubicin Treatment.” The print edition of the journal concludes with 2 important perspective papers. The first paper addresses the “Lymphedema Action Plan (LeAP): Proactive Lymphedema Risk Reduction for Patients With Breast Cancer,” while the second paper reviews the implications of the new anticancer immunotherapies or physical therapy practice.

The Case Report, Clinical Conversation, Research Round-up were moved to online publications and are accessible from the journal home page under the articles tab. Please do not forget to read the excellent online offerings in this issue that address topics related to edema, cancer-related lymphedema, and chest pain in breast cancer survivors. The Case Report is titled “Physical and Edema Therapy Management of Amyloidosis in the Acute Care Setting.” Finally, the Clinical Conversation and Research Round-up columns are contributions from the Lymphedema Special Interest Group (SIG). The Research Round-up column examines the rapidly changing landscape of cancer-related lymphedema risk stratification and targeted treatment from preoperative baselines to predisposition. Management of breast cancer and breast and chest wall pain was a hot topic on the listserve in April, and this Clinical Conversation column continues that discussion with a case report, titled “Dry Needling for Chronic Breast/Chest Wall Pain After Breast Cancer Treatment.”

Mary Fisher, the senior editor, spearheaded “ONCOREADS,” an opportunity to collaborate on offering CEUs for reading an evidence-based journal article, which began late last fall. If you have not had an opportunity to view this offering in partnership with the APTA Learning Center, summer is a great time to check it out. Please consider submitting your research and case reports to the journal to continue to move our science and evidence for practice forward. Christopher Wilson and Richard Briggs are guest editors for the special January 2020 issue on Palliative Care and Hospice. If you are interested in submitting a manuscript, the call for papers is available at: http://www.editorialmanager.com/rehabonc/default.aspx. Looking even farther ahead, the January 2021 special issue topic is on balance impairment and falls in cancer survivors with guest editor, Min Huang, PT, PhD, neurologic clinical specialist.

To get articles hot off the press, go to publications ahead of print (PAP) under the articles tab on the journal home page. You may subscribe PAP alerts, e-toc alerts, and link to fb and twitter feeds from the journal home page. Stay tuned as the Academy produces more clinical practice guidelines, and the EDGE task forces continue to produce systematic reviews of clinical outcome measures.

The first cohort of Oncologic PT Clinical Specialists took the ABPTS examination in March 2019 and got news of their results in June. If you bump into one of these new board-certified clinical specialists, please congratulate them on this wonderful accomplishment. Applications to sit for the examination in March 2020 closed on July 1, 2019. For next years’ candidates who applied to take the examination, there is an excellent downloadable resource document for members on the Academy home page. Chris Wilson is leading the Academy’s initiatives for Oncologic residency programs with a new listserve for members interested in residency and is developing an SIG for residency programs. Consider joining the listserve.

The journal continues to seek manuscript reviewers. If interested in becoming a manuscript reviewer, please e-mail me at cpfalzer@umich.edu. Ponder volunteering with the Academy, and Oncologic Specialty Council, ABPTS to keep building the momentum.

As we are past halfway through the year, it is time to let the readers know that my term as editor will end December 31, and Mary Fisher, the senior editor, steps into the Editor-in-Chief shoes. I will enjoy a few more beautiful sunsets at the lake house. I leave the journal in Mary’s capable hands with a wonderful group of associate editors and Editorial Board members. Finally, as you may never say thank you enough, given the hard work it takes to produce a high-quality journal; thanks to all of the members who contribute to the journal from the authors, manuscript reviewers, associate editors, and senior editor. This journal would not exist without your efforts. I hope you have an enjoyable summer vacation and do that summer vacation reading, listen to an article podcast on iTunes or the journal home page, or do an ONCOREAD article or 2 or 3 and earn some CEUs.

– Editor, Lucinda (Cindy) Pfalzer, PT, PhD, FACSM, FAPTA