Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees
Purpose: The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guideline committees (GCs) play a vital role in defining the standard of care for cancer management. Equitable specialty representation is crucial for unbiased recommendations and perspectives. This study examines the specialty and leadership...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Advances in Radiation Oncology |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452109425000612 |
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| author | Bismarck C. Odei, MD Temitope Agabalogun, MD Erika Bello-Pardo, BS Christina Huang, MD, MS Daniel Vanderbilt, MD, PhD Seyi Omeh, MD, MPH Benjamin Sterling Fumiko Chino, MD |
| author_facet | Bismarck C. Odei, MD Temitope Agabalogun, MD Erika Bello-Pardo, BS Christina Huang, MD, MS Daniel Vanderbilt, MD, PhD Seyi Omeh, MD, MPH Benjamin Sterling Fumiko Chino, MD |
| author_sort | Bismarck C. Odei, MD |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose: The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guideline committees (GCs) play a vital role in defining the standard of care for cancer management. Equitable specialty representation is crucial for unbiased recommendations and perspectives. This study examines the specialty and leadership representation on NCCN GCs, with a focus on radiation oncologists (ROs). Methods and Materials: This cross-sectional observational study evaluated committee member characteristics on NCCN treatment GCs available in 2020 and subset of committees with guidelines containing category 1 or 2A radiation therapy recommendations. Collected data included member characteristics and committee roles. Interspecialty variance was evaluated via χ2 tests. Results: A total of 1768 NCCN committee members were identified, representing 54 NCCN GCs with a median committee size of 33 (range, 22-38). Among all members: 47.6% were medical oncologists (MOs), 20.9% were surgical oncologists (SOs), and 8.9% were RO; 22.6% were other specialists. Women accounted for 37.6% (316/841) of MO, 34.2%(54/158) of RO and 22.8% (84/369) of SO members (P < .001). RO representation varied based on disease site (2.4%-29.9%; 15 individual committees had no RO representation) and in leadership roles (3% chairs, 23% vice chairs). On 38 committees with guidelines containing category 1 or 2A radiation therapy recommendations, the pattern of low representation persisted (8.4%). Although 39% of individuals on all committees were women, only 23% of committee chairs were women (P = .048). Conclusion: There is low representation of ROs on NCCN GCs and in leadership roles, which may limit the discussion during guideline development and negatively impact the diversity of perspectives in management recommendations. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ee9aa3315b3a4300bc7e83c82b65b00e |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2452-1094 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Advances in Radiation Oncology |
| spelling | doaj-art-ee9aa3315b3a4300bc7e83c82b65b00e2025-08-20T03:09:45ZengElsevierAdvances in Radiation Oncology2452-10942025-06-0110610177310.1016/j.adro.2025.101773Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline CommitteesBismarck C. Odei, MD0Temitope Agabalogun, MD1Erika Bello-Pardo, BS2Christina Huang, MD, MS3Daniel Vanderbilt, MD, PhD4Seyi Omeh, MD, MPH5Benjamin Sterling6Fumiko Chino, MD7Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah; Corresponding author: Bismarck C. Odei, MDWashington University School of Medicine in St Louis, St Louis, MissouriWexner Medical Center, Ohio State University, Columbus OhioDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Duke University, Durham North CarolinaDepartment of Radiation Oncology, MultiCare Regional Cancer, Tacoma WashingtonDepartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CaliforniaDepartment of Radiation Oncology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UtahDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York New YorkPurpose: The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guideline committees (GCs) play a vital role in defining the standard of care for cancer management. Equitable specialty representation is crucial for unbiased recommendations and perspectives. This study examines the specialty and leadership representation on NCCN GCs, with a focus on radiation oncologists (ROs). Methods and Materials: This cross-sectional observational study evaluated committee member characteristics on NCCN treatment GCs available in 2020 and subset of committees with guidelines containing category 1 or 2A radiation therapy recommendations. Collected data included member characteristics and committee roles. Interspecialty variance was evaluated via χ2 tests. Results: A total of 1768 NCCN committee members were identified, representing 54 NCCN GCs with a median committee size of 33 (range, 22-38). Among all members: 47.6% were medical oncologists (MOs), 20.9% were surgical oncologists (SOs), and 8.9% were RO; 22.6% were other specialists. Women accounted for 37.6% (316/841) of MO, 34.2%(54/158) of RO and 22.8% (84/369) of SO members (P < .001). RO representation varied based on disease site (2.4%-29.9%; 15 individual committees had no RO representation) and in leadership roles (3% chairs, 23% vice chairs). On 38 committees with guidelines containing category 1 or 2A radiation therapy recommendations, the pattern of low representation persisted (8.4%). Although 39% of individuals on all committees were women, only 23% of committee chairs were women (P = .048). Conclusion: There is low representation of ROs on NCCN GCs and in leadership roles, which may limit the discussion during guideline development and negatively impact the diversity of perspectives in management recommendations.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452109425000612 |
| spellingShingle | Bismarck C. Odei, MD Temitope Agabalogun, MD Erika Bello-Pardo, BS Christina Huang, MD, MS Daniel Vanderbilt, MD, PhD Seyi Omeh, MD, MPH Benjamin Sterling Fumiko Chino, MD Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees Advances in Radiation Oncology |
| title | Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees |
| title_full | Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees |
| title_fullStr | Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees |
| title_full_unstemmed | Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees |
| title_short | Representation of Radiation Oncologists on National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guideline Committees |
| title_sort | representation of radiation oncologists on national comprehensive cancer network guideline committees |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452109425000612 |
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