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23 Background: Cancer diagnoses introduce layers of complexity for care coordination. Oncologists often find themselves independently managing coincident, non-cancer illnesses. How often oncologists engage in direct management of non-cancer conditions, rather than coordinating with patients' other providers, is not well understood. We examined how often oncologists prescribe medications to manage non-oncologic conditions, as a proxy for assuming primary-care responsibilities. Methods: The cohort included all US physicians with a specialty of Hematology-Oncology or Medical Oncology from 2016-2020, available in the Centers for Medicare this decreased during the study period, falling from 9.5% in 2016 to 7.4% in 2020 (p10 years prior to the end of the study period, most notable in providers graduating 1990–1991 (2.2 1.9-2.6). Those at academic institutions (0.7 0.6-0.8) were less likely to prescribe non-cancer medications. Conclusions: A small but substantive portion of oncologists’ prescriptions are for medications unrelated to cancer care. The downtrend in non-cancer prescriptions may reflect that coordinated co-management of patients with cancer is increasing. The rise in telemedicine and digital health represents an opportunity to establish stronger multidisciplinary care for patients with cancer through hybrid cross-collaboration between primary care physicians and oncologists. This is especially advantageous in regions where in-person integration of physician groups may not be possible. Additionally virtual continuing medical education sessions may aid primary care physicians in managing non-cancer medications for the cancer population. Trends in oncologists’ prescribing patterns from 2016–2020: Mean per-provider proportion of non-cancer medication prescription (%). Medication Class 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Cancer-Directed 30.4 31.1 32.2 32.7 33.9 Non-Cancer 9.5 8.9 8.2 7.6 7.4
Shah et al. (Mon,) studied this question.