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Fifth Annual Golden Apple Award given to Mary Jo Geyer
April 7, 2010
Dr. Mary Jo Geyer has been awarded the fifth annual Golden Apple Award from Health Volunteers Overseas for her commitment to improving the management of wound and lymphedema care around the world. Dr. Geyer currently serves as a member of the ALFP International Advisory Board. For more information, please click on the press release.
The Allina Uncommon Caring Annual Award of Excellence
2010
Dr. Nancy Hutchison of Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute has received The Allina Uncommon Caring Annual Award of Excellence. Dr. Hutchison is the medical director of Sister Kenny¡¯s Cancer Rehabilitation and Lymphedema Program and is currently a collaborator with the ALFP. Dr. Hutchison is leading a team at Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute in partnering with the ALFP as a pilot site for the lymphedema minimum data set (MDS).
MU Researchers Collaborate to Develop Standard of Care for Breast Cancer Survivors with Lymphedema (MU News Bureau)
February 11, 2010
ALFP Video (MU News Bureau)
February 11, 2010
National Lymphedema Awareness Day
March 6, 2010
March 6th is national lymphedema awareness day. For more information please go to the National Lymphedema Network website.
Oncology Nursing Society Special Interest Group Excellence Award Recipient-Lymphedema Management SIG
2010
The award recipient of the 2010 Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) Special Interest Group (SIG) Excellence Award is the Lymphedema Management SIG. Dr. Mei R. Fu, member of the ALFP steering committee and ALFP research committee co-chair, is also the chair of the ONS SIG in 2008-2010. For more information, please visit the ONS Leadership Update.
AHRQ call for Public Review of Diagnosis and Treatment of Secondary Lymphedema
November 18, 2009
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has developed a technological assessment review on diagnosis and treatment of secondary lymphedema. The opportunity to review this assessment will begin on November 18, 2009 and will be open until December 8, 2009. For more information and instructions on how to complete the review process please visit the website.
Download and comment on the assessment by December 8, 2009
Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee (MEDCAC) Meeting Announcement
November 18, 2009
The November 18, 2009 MEDCAC meeting was a very important forward step in the process of improving Medicare coverage of lymphedema treatment policy without a change to current regulations. The MEDCAC meeting, the first in ten years to be dedicated to lymphedema treatment, provided us with expert opinion that existing evidence gives reasonable confidence that the following lymphedema treatment modalities improve the health of lymphedema patients:
a. Complete decongestive therapy (CDT) comprising manual lymph drainage, compression bandaging and garments, exercises and skin care; b. CDT in conjunction with a sequential pump; c. Compression bandage systems and compression garments; and d. Sequential pumps.
This meeting established that there is some indication that the commonly-used protocols of CDT are effective, but there is a paucity of high-level evidence to support this indication. Some of the protocols deemed effective are already covered by Medicare and others are not, but the coverage documentation is fragmented, not coordinated and incomplete, and should be corrected. Presumably that will be the next step to be taken by the CMS Coverage and Analysis Group, using the upcoming recommendations of the MEDCAC.
The meeting transcript can be found at: CMS website. To request a copy of the PowerPoint presentation given by Dr. Jane Armer at the meeting please email alfp@missouri.edu.
Trans-NIH Working Group Meeting Lymphatic Research
September 2007
An executive summary of the of the trans-NIH working group meeting on lymphatic research can be found at here. This group met in September of 2007 to provide recommendations for future lymphatic research.
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