Bringing world-class cancer care close to home

Las Vegas, Nev. —  While Nevada offers strong medical and surgical oncology services, the state continues to face provider shortages and fragmented coordination across facilities. Addressing these challenges is vital to improving outcomes for cancer patients.

Tom Cronin, Regional Vice President of Oncology Services for HCA Healthcare and board member for the American Cancer Society, shares how the HCA Healthcare Sarah Cannon Cancer Network is advancing cancer care in Nevada.

How does HCA Healthcare plan to address the cancer care shortcomings in Nevada?

HCA Healthcare — which owns and operates Sunrise, Sunrise Children’s, Southern Hills and MountainView Hospitals — and its Sarah Cannon Cancer Network are investing in both workforce development and the addition of programs not currently available in the state.

We have one of the largest Graduate Medical Education programs in Las Vegas, and just last year we launched the Galen College of Nursing to address Nevada’s nursing shortage. In September, we opened a day hospital at MountainView to treat patients with various blood cancers — a program not available anywhere else in the state.

The Sarah Cannon Cancer Network has also invested in a dedicated oncology nurse navigation program in Las Vegas to guide patients through their entire cancer journey. Specially trained nurses serve as an anchor for support and information, attend patient appointments, and participate in multi-disciplinary meetings to remove barriers to care.

In addition, along with other cancer leaders, we have been hosting several multidisciplinary cancer tumor-site workgroups to actively determine how we as a community can improve all aspects of cancer care in our state.

Why is it important that advanced cancer care is available locally?

Last year alone, more than 1,200 patients left the state for inpatient cancer care. This substantial number of patients seeking care elsewhere confirms that while several academic cancer centers have established local “feeder” clinics in our community, high-acuity patients are still forced to seek essential treatment elsewhere.

In the last year prior to opening the Sarah Cannon Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program at MountainView Hospital, 132 patients with various types of blood cancers had to travel out of state for care. Many were too sick to travel, and it was estimated that an additional 94 patients did not leave Nevada to receive the much-needed care that could save their lives.

What makes you so passionate about advancing cancer care in Nevada?

Cancer has most likely impacted all of us at one point or another. Whether it has hit us personally or affected a loved one, it is an indiscriminate disease that has no boundaries. The silver lining is that new treatments and technologies are paving the way to eradicate this disease. We maintain a focused effort on research, screening and education.

My passion comes from the confidence I have in connecting the national strength of the Sarah Cannon Cancer Network with the expertise of local physicians because I know we can make a lasting impact on patients across the state.

Tell me more about the Sarah Cannon Cancer Network.

The Sarah Cannon Cancer Network gives patients access to the best minds across the country. Our network sees 130,000 newly diagnosed cancer patients annually, and our specialty provider leadership teams meet frequently to review and revise cancer treatment pathways and incorporate the latest research data to provide the best outcomes.

The Sarah Cannon Transplant & Cellular Therapy Network is the largest cellular therapy provider, treating 1,500 transplant and cellular therapy patients annually across its ten programs located throughout the United States and United Kingdom. Each Sarah Cannon Transplant and Cellular Therapy Network program features a specialized team committed to the care of complex blood cancers and other disorders.

We partner with research institutes to enroll thousands of patients nationally in clinical trials every year. Our network gives patients a gateway to these trials. Our partnerships allow our patients to have access to over 1,500 clinical trials at 290 plus locations.

What is the long-term vision to ensure that all Nevadans have access to this comprehensive cancer care?

Our vision, shared with many local physicians and lawmakers, is to keep care local. We seek to create a single, highly coordinated patient experience through collaboration and partnerships. That means improved access to clinical trials, investing in new technologies such as advanced navigational robotic bronchoscopy systems for diagnosing lung cancers, state-of-the-art minimally invasive platforms for treating solid tumors, 3D mammography and breast MRI for detecting cancers, among others.

What are your next steps planned to ensure that this vision becomes a reality in Nevada?

We will continue our collaborative approach with local physicians to quickly expand our services to support a broader range of cancer care. Leveraging the 67-year legacy and foundational infrastructure of the Sunrise Health System, along with the clinical expertise of local physicians and the HCA Healthcare Sarah Cannon Network, we are well positioned to effectively advance this vision.