Oncology Experts Highlight Ways to Educate and Empower Patients About AE Management

In honor of Patient Safety Awareness Week, which is being observed from March 8 through 14, 2026, OncLive® sat down with key experts across oncology specialties to hear how they prioritize patient safety in their practices, from educating patients about the treatment-associated adverse effects (AEs) they may experience, to encouraging them to speak up at any time if they develop toxicities or concerning symptoms.

We spoke with:

• Lipika Goyal, MD, an associate professor in the University Medical Line in the Division of Oncology of the Department of Medicine at Stanford University, as well as a member of the Stanford Cancer Institute in California
• La-Urshalar Brock, FNP, BSN, MSN, a family nurse practitioner at the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia
• Hung Khong, MD, a breast medical oncologist at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center, part of Banner Health, in Gilbert, Arizona
• Colin A. Vale, MD, an assistant professor in the Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology at the Emory University School of Medicine and a hematologist at the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University

Goyal: One of the things I always say to my patients is: never suffer alone. Never suffer in silence. Call us. Call us. Call us. I say to every patient: this is your first rodeo. This is our thousandth rodeo. If you’re having any AEs, please give my office a call, so we can troubleshoot with you over the phone or bring you into clinic if need be.

When we talk to patients about drugs when they’re first consenting to them, it can be an overwhelming visit, because there’s so much information coming at them. I often say: bring a family member or friend with you during the first visit as we talk about these drugs, so there can be a second brain in the room who can take notes or hear a lot of the education we’re doing.

We often set up a separate appointment with a nurse practitioner or physician’s assistants to do an education session, primarily on the AEs of the drugs. Then, we make sure patients have all the phone numbers, so they can get in touch with us easily. It’s an ongoing process to manage AEs. [Many] drugs work but [are associated with] low-grade chronic toxicities, such as hand-foot syndrome, issues with nails, and sometimes chronic diarrhea, that can affect patients’ quality of life [QOL]. I encourage patients to speak up and let their medical team know if they’re having AEs.

Brock: Depending on what medicine [a patient is receiving], I like to spell out the top AEs that I see for whatever drug we’re talking about. I like to give them handouts, so they have something to take home with them to review. I also bring in the pharmacist. We’re lucky enough at our clinic that we have pharmacists, so I will usually bring the pharmacist in if they’re available to talk about the AEs again, because I’ll say, I may not have listed everything, but I’m telling you what I see most in terms of this medication, and the pharmacist will come in and round it out.

Talking about [the AEs] and repetition, going over the AEs again and saying, please let us know if you have any of these AEs so we can help. Every time [the patient] comes in, [I also ask] specifically about those known AEs that could cause a patient to maybe stop taking their medicine.

[I also ask] them to please, if they start any supplements, let us know ahead of time. We are not against any supplements, but we want to make sure they don’t interact with the medications the patient is taking. That’s important, because right now, there are lots of supplements that people are taking, or they’re talking to their friends, and those friends are telling them to take certain supplements. Our goal is to make sure the medicines that are taken are effective, and that patients are not taking something else that may decrease that effectiveness.

Khong: When we treat a patient, we don’t just care about response or progression-free survival. We also care about QOL, and that’s where the AEs come in. When we start talking to patient about any treatment option, we always discuss AEs, so they are well aware of everything. That’s what a clinician should do upfront, is discuss all possibility of potential AEs with the patient.

In addition to that, make sure the patient understands. Ask patients questions to make sure they understand the risks vs benefits [of treatment]. Also, because it’s hard for patients to remember everything you discuss with them, we usually give patients handouts. Handouts [should] have the name the drug, because patients need to understand the AEs, but they also need to know what drug they’re taking. There are patients who have no idea of the name of the drug they’re taking, they just say that the doctor told them to take it, so they take it. The handouts have the name of the drug, the potential AEs, and how to mitigate the AEs.

Patients may have many different AEs that they consider minor that they don’t want to call the clinic or the doctor about because they don’t want to bother the doctor. There are certain [mitigation strategies] they can do at home, and then we will tell them when they need to call the clinic, nurse, or doctor. By doing that, patients feel more confident about taking medications and become adherent to medications. If they have AEs and they don’t understand how to mitigate minor AEs at home, and they don’t want to bother the doctor, they become noncompliant. They don’t take the medication as directed.

We also talk to patients. We call them, and then whenever we see them, we go through any symptoms of AEs that they have. We also teach them again how to mitigate certain AEs, and we encourage them to call us or send us a message in their patient portals anytime they have any questions or any AEs that concern them.

Vale: We’re fortunate here to work with a wonderful multidisciplinary team. We rely on our fantastic oncology nurse navigators, leukemia pharmacists, social workers, and nursing staff, to educate patients and provide platforms for them to express concerns or voice any questions they have related to their care plan.