Download The American Psychosocial Oncology Society was formed in 1986

The American Psychosocial Oncology Society
Background: The American Psychosocial Oncology Society was formed in 1986 to bring together
professionals working in the psychological, behavioral and social aspects of cancer. The APOS
membership is a network of 450+ scientific and clinical professionals from all disciplines working in
psychosocial oncology—advocacy, chaplaincy, counseling, nursing, oncology, psychiatry, psychology,
social work, and sociology. These health care professionals network and collaborate to apply clinical,
translational, behavioral and psycho-oncological research into psychosocial oncology practice.
Soundbite: APOS is the only multidisciplinary organization in the United States dedicated to researching
and treating the psychosocial aspects of cancer.
APOS Conferences: APOS’ annual conferences share new research and new clinical innovations with up
to 500 researchers and clinicians each year and, since 2004, have focused on the following themes:
 Advancing Multidisciplinary Approaches to Psychosocial Oncology
 Translating Psychosocial Oncology Research into Interdisciplinary Practice
 Synthesizing Research, Advocacy and Program Development to Optimize the Quality of Care
 Promoting Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care Across Diverse Communities
 Integrating Psychosocial Services in Quality Cancer Care: A Cornerstone of Care
 Integrating Psychosocial Research and Practice in Quality Cancer Care: Setting the Standard
 Integrating Psychosocial Research and Practice in Quality Cancer Care: Confronting Challenges
Together
 Quality Cancer Care Across the Lifespan: Psychosocial Research and Practice Across Disciplines
 Reducing Health Disparities in Quality Cancer Care: Psychosocial Research, Practice and
Outreach
 From Psychosocial Oncology to Oncology Supportive Care Services: New Evidence, Standards
and Models for Patient-Centered Care
 Implementing Quality Care Standards for Psychosocial Oncology and Supportive Care
 From National to Global: Implementing the Standard of Psychosocial Care in Oncology
In 2016, APOS begins a three-year conference plan focused on the theme of Achieving Health Equity
in Psychosocial Oncology. The 2016 conference addresses health equity in psychosocial oncology
across ethnic, racial, and sociologic and religious cultural minorities, in 2017, APOS will focus on
achieving health equity across the lifespan—from pediatrics to geriatrics, and in 2018, the
conversation will turn to how innovative uses of big data and technology can help achieve health
equity in psychosocial oncology.
Member Engagement: APOS has seven Special Interest Groups (SIGs) that allow cross-disciplinary
professionals to collaborate and network: Bereavement, Cancer Caregiver, E-Health, Health Disparities,
Integrative Medicine, Pediatrics, Sexual & Reproductive Health, Spirituality, and Survivorship.
APOS offers free webinars for members (for purchase by nonmembers) on a wide range of subjects,
including funding for psychosocial programs, Acceptance-Commitment Therapy with cancer patients,
anti-depressant medication use in cancer patients, understanding and supporting grief across the cancer
trajectory, and how to write a manuscript.
APOS offers mentoring opportunities for early career professionals.
Programs: APOS offers training in routine comprehensive distress screening and endorses survivorship
care plans and patient navigation as a means of achieving the psychosocial quality care standard in
cancer treatment.
APOS started a toll-free HELPLINE in 2003 to connect cancer patients, their caregivers, and advocacy
organizations with psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and counselors skilled in the
management of cancer-related distress. This referral program, now part of the Cancer Support Helpline®
(affiliated with the Cancer Support Community), served almost 600 people in December 2014.
Publications: APOS publishes three reference handbooks for clinicians to guide the psychiatric and
psychological dimensions of cancer symptom management for adult, pediatric, and geriatric patients.
APOS also publishes, in collaboration with the International Psycho-Oncology Society, the PsychoOncology textbook, which covers topics including cognitive dysfunction caused by chemotherapy, major
'somatopsychic' symptoms caused by proinflammatory cytokines, evidence-based clinical practice
guidelines from around the world, survivorship issues, psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacologic
interventions, gender-based and geriatric issues, underserved populations, community based programs,
and caregiver training and education.
APOS, with IPOS, also publishes the monthly journal Psycho-Oncology: Journal of the Psychological,
Social and Behavioral Dimensions of Cancer, a leading journal in the field with a consistently high impact
factor and readership of >5,000.
Collaborations: APOS works/has worked closely with the following affiliated organizations to develop
and implement cancer care standards that integrate psychosocial cancer care with biomedical cancer
care:
 Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine (APM)
 Alliance for Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care
 American Cancer Society
 American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer
 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
 Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC)
 Association of Oncology Social Work (AOSW)
 CancerCare
 Cancer Support Community
 Children's Cancer Network
 International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS)
 National Cancer Institute (NCI)
 National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS)
 National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)
 Oncology Nursing Society (ONS)
 Patient Quality of Life (PQLC)
 Society of Behavioral Medicine