Articles and Blogs

Destiny-04 Changes Practice: Two Experts Weigh In on Trastuzumab Deruxtecan 

June 6, 2022

Trastuzumab deruxtecan (Enhertu) improves overall survival in previously treated women with metastatic breast cancer with low HER2 expression, data from DESTINY-04 revealed. Listen in as TxSCO President Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, Executive Vice President, Texas Oncology, and Jennifer Litton, MD, Vice President, Clinical Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discuss what the results mean for breast cancer care, why the drug’s bystander effect helps overcome the problem of tumor heterogeneity, how they plan to manage potential toxicities, including interstitial lung disease, and why more collaboration with pathologists will be needed.

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Growing Up in a House Filled With Science Leads to a Career in Breast Cancer and Health Outcomes Research

June 3, 2022

Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, Executive Vice President of Policy and Strategic Initiatives, Texas Oncology, was reared in Plano, Texas, a city in the sprawling Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. “My father was an electrical engineer with a PhD, and all throughout my childhood, I was exposed to the wonders of science as a way to explain how parts of the world worked. We had an oscilloscope and telescope in our home, and I remember my father waking me in the middle of the night to go look through the telescope at meteor storms and a lunar eclipse. And my early experience in science instilled in me a love for asking hard questions and using knowledge and investigation to solve complex problems. So, although there were no physicians in my immediate family, a love of science definitely helped steer my path toward medicine.”

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Case Study: Implementing Virtual Visits for a Statewide Practice

December 2021

To inform ACCC's Adoption & Expansion of Telehealth Solutions education program, local cancer program—Texas Oncology—shared best practices and lessons learned in using telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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State by State: Advocacy for Patient Access to Quality Cancer Care

June 30, 2021

With the adjournment of the 87th Texas Legislature on May 31, cancer care advocates across the state celebrated major wins, including the passage of SB 1065, HB 1919, HB 1763, and the signing of HB 428 into law. While these successes are encouraging, legislation to support fertility preservation services for patients with cancer continues to stall, despite advocacy efforts taken by TxSCO and other coalition groups.

In this ACCCBuzz blog, TxSCO President Deb Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, Director of Public Policy, Texas Oncology, speaks to the importance of fertility preservation and the efforts made to move the needle on this critical issue. 

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Social Workers Promote Health Literacy With Ask Me 3

July 15, 2020

In this interview with the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), Jenn Paxton, LCSW, OSW-C, a social worker at Texas Oncology in South Dallas talks about the Ask Me 3^® tool, which encourages patients to ask three simple questions—and urges providers to adequately answer them—and why it's effective for promoting patient health literacy.
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Bolstering Patient Care with Decision Support Tools

By Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA
January 9, 2020

In an interview with the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA—an active leader in breast cancer research and a breast cancer specialist in Austin, Texas—discusses how applied informatics has helped her practice and the future direction of telemedicine in cancer care, including subspecialty services. 

Debra Patt, MD, MPH, MBA, is a practicing oncologist and breast cancer specialist in Austin, Texas. She is the president-elect of the Texas Society of Clinical Oncology and executive vice president of Texas Oncology. Dr. Patt’s research focuses on imaging informatics for breast cancer, clinical decision support systems, predictive analytics to reduce risk in patients with advanced cancer, and quality improvement. She is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Clinical Oncology-Clinical Cancer Informatics. She serves on the US Oncology Research Breast Cancer Committee; chairs the breast cancer subsection of the Pathways Task Force for The US Oncology Network; and has expertise in healthcare policy having testified before Congress to protect access to care for Medicare beneficiaries.
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