Comprehensive Oncologic Emergencies Research Network (CONCERN)

Overview

The Comprehensive Oncologic Emergencies Research Network (CONCERN) was established in March 2015 with the goal to accelerate knowledge generation, synthesis, and translation of oncologic emergency medicine research through multi-center collaborations. CONCERN is an open scientific forum for researchers working across oncology and emergency medicine interested in collaborative approaches to improve outcomes during unscheduled cancer-related medical care. Research is needed to better inform appropriate utilization, prevention, management, and coordination of unscheduled cancer-related care, implement cancer prevention services, and develop evidence-based management strategies within urgent and emergency care settings.

Objectives

1. To identify knowledge gaps impacting the prevention, management, and coordination of cancer-related urgent and emergent care issues.
2. Accelerate knowledge generation and translation through multi-centre research collaborations across oncology and emergency medicine.
3. Identify and test oncologic emergency prevention measures in oncology care settings.
4. Identify and test care management strategies for oncologic emergencies presenting to urgent and emergency medicine settings.
5. Translate research findings into national guidelines and implement in academic and community emergency care settings.
6. Support collaborative educational efforts in the area of cancer and emergency medicine.
7. Mentor new and established investigators working in the area of cancer and emergency medicine.

Publications

• Soppe SE, Peacock Hinton S, Dillon EC, et al. Emergency cancer diagnosis in older adults: patterns, subgroups, and implications for healthcare quality metrics. JNCI Cancer Spectr. Published online January 29, 2026. doi:10.1093/jncics/pkag008
• Heinert, Sara W et al. “Adapting Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs for the Emergency Department.” The Journal of emergency medicine vol. 79 (2025): 539-544. doi:10.1016/j.jemermed.2025.09.029
• DiMartino L, Merrill V, Skinner CS, Hogan TP, Roche-Green A, Wang W, Sadeghi N, Hong AS. Early Integration of Outpatient Palliative Care among Adults with Advanced Cancer in a Safety-Net Health System: A Patterns of Care Analysis. JCO Oncology Practice, 2025. PMID: 40378348​
• Hong AS, Halm EA, Courtney DM, Sadeghi N, Dickerson U, Pierce A, Cox JV, Lee SJC. Emergency and Oncology Clinician Perspectives on Avoidable Hospital Use by Adults with Cancer. Supportive Care in Cancer. 2025. Doi: 10.1007/s00520-025-09469-8. PMID: 40266398​
• Hong AS, He L, Pilla P, Liao JM, Courtney DM, Sadeghi N, Halm EA. Early Examination of Hospital-Level Performance on Unplanned, Potentially Avoidable Hospital Visits After Chemotherapy, 2018-2022. Health Serv Res. 2025 Jul 22:e70014. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.70014. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40692499. ​
• Hong AS, Charania S, Bazzell A, Courtney M, Sweetenham JW, Fleming J, Lee SJC, Halm EA. Comparing Care Delivery Efficiency Between Emergency Department and Oncology Urgent Care. Perm J. 2025 Jun 26:1-8. doi: 10.7812/TPP/24.195. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40566871. ​
• Hong AS, Babool S, He L, Halm EA. Trends in Providers Participating in Medicare Oncology Value-Based Care Models. Health Affairs Scholar, 2025. PMID: 40190703​
• Wattana MK et al. (2025) Perceived Gaps in Oncologic Emergency Care for Patients with Cancer: A Qualitative Comparison of Emergency Medicine and Oncologist Physician Perspectives. Cancers (Basel). 2025 Feb 27;17(5):828​
• Grudzen CR et al (2025). Factors impacting loneliness in patients with serious life-limiting illness in the Emergency Medicine Palliative Care Access (EMPallA) study. BMC PalliatCare. 2025 Mar 8;24(1):58. ​
• Coyne CJ et al. (2025) Ultrasound-Guided Erector Spinae Plane Block for Breakthrough Cancer Pain in the Emergency Department: A Case Series. J Palliat Med. 2025 Apr 18​
• Yilmaz et al. (2025). “Understanding Oncologic Emergencies and Related Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalizations: A Systematic Review”. BMC Emergency Medicine;25:40.​
• Pettit et al. (2025). “Collaboration and research opportunities to enhance cancer care and reduce avoidable emergency department visits”. Am J Emerg Med. 88:257-258.​
• Pettit et al. (2025). “Outcomes for Emergency Presentations of Lung Cancer: A Scoping Review” J Emerg Med. 70: 50-67.​
• Tabriz et al. (2025). “Assessing the Validity of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Measure in Identifying Potentially Preventable Emergency Department Visits by Patients With Cancer”. JCO Oncol Pract. 21(2).​
• Adler et al. (2025). “Low-cost interventions to increase uptake of cervical cancer screening among emergency department patients: Results of a randomized clinical trial”. AcadEmerg Med. Jan 28.​
• Reyes-Gibby, Cielito C et al. “Immune-related adverse event in the emergency department: methodology of the immune-related emergency disposition index (IrEDi).” Emergency cancer care vol. 3,1 (2024): 1. Doi:10.1186/s44201-023-00023-y

Grants & Awards

• UNC Lineberger Pilot Awardees (1-year, $50K) “Planning CONCERN's Program Project: Emergency Department Care Across the Cancer Continuum”
  • Caroline Thompson (PI), UNC; Beau Abar (Co-I), David Adler (Co-I), University of Rochester; Jason Bischof (Co-I), Ohio State University; Christopher Coyne (Co-I),  University of California San Diego; Jessica Denomme (Co-I), University of Virginia Health; Arthur Hong (Co-I), University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center; Cielito Reyes-Gibby (Co-I), University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
  • Starting February 2026, this pilot will develop a competitive National Cancer Institute Healthcare Delivery Research Program Project (P01) application to extend the CONCERN network’s research goals by developing a program focused on emergency department (ED) cancer care, with emphasis on defining and addressing gaps in the current system while positioning the ED as a critical, but neglected, point in the cancer care continuum.
• Lung Cancer Research Foundation ($150K) “Increasing Lung Cancer Screening Uptake Among Emergency Department Patients”
  • David Adler (PI), Beau Abar (Co-I) and Patricia Rivera (Co-I), University of Rochester
  • This project leverages the universal access setting of the ED to identify individuals at greatest risk for lung cancer and get them screened. A scalable ED-based intervention that increases LCS uptake would save lives.
• American Cancer Society Discovery Boost Grant (2-years, $300K)
  • ​“Investigating Safety-Net Financial Account Data for Cancer Health Services Research”​
    • Arthur Hong (PI), UT Southwestern ​
    • Starting in September 2025. 'We are investigating the impact of delays while applying for coverage programs for the uninsured (eg Medicaid) on clinical cancer outcomes.’​
  • 'Advancing Cervical Cancer Screening Through Emergency Department-based Self-Sampling’. ​
    • Beau Abar (PI), Dave Adler (Co-I), University of Rochester​
    • The study, starting in November 2025, seeks to evaluate the utility of an ED-based intervention to identify cervical cancer screening needs and provide the opportunity for onsite hrHPV self-sampling. We have already been piloting our distribution and follow-up protocols this summer, with very positive preliminary findings to date. 

Meetings

• Cancer-Related Emergency and Urgent Care: Prevention, Management, and Care Coordination (December 2021)
  • Note: Links to recorded presentations are available in the meeting agenda.
• Cancer and Emergency Medicine: Setting the Research Agenda Workshop (March 2015)

Contacts

NIH Contacts

Network Executive Committee