Christopher Slatore, MD, MS

Improving Patient-Centered Outcomes

Christopher Slatore, MD, MS, of the VA Portland Health Care System conducted the first study to compare patient-centered outcomes of surgery and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for patients with early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Historically, patients with stage I NSCLC have been treated with surgery whenever they are fit for an operation. Dr. Slatore’s study attempted to capture what patients perceive as the best treatment approach for them, regardless of their fitness for an operation. Dr. Slatore and his team are part of the Early Stage Lung Cancer Comparative Effectiveness Research Consortium.

In this ROI-funded grant, Dr. Slatore:

• Compared patient-centered outcomes of SBRT with surgery among patients with early stage NSCLC.
• Surveyed patients with early stage NSCLC and their clinicians to evaluate how communication influences patient-centered outcomes and decision-making.
• Identified strategies to improve patient-centered outcomes for NSCLC and facilitate the use of decision aids and educational materials.

Additional Research

As a result of his ROI-funded study, Dr. Slatore is:

• A co-investigator on a $700,000 NCI-funded prospective observational study that was patterned on his ROI-funded study (1R01CA203193-01).
• A co-investigator on a randomized controlled trial of surgical resection vs. SBRT for early stage NSCLC within the VA (CSP 2005 - Veterans Administration Lung cancer surgery Or stereotactic Radiotherapy trial (VALOR)).
• The senior investigator for a multi-society survey of clinicians’ opinions on treatment for Stage I lung cancer.

Publications and Presentations

The results of this ROI research award have been presented or published in the following places:

• Longitudinal Health-related Quality of Life among Individuals Considering Treatment for Stage I Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer published in the August 2020 issue of the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. 
• Understanding Patients’ Values and Preferences Regarding Early Stage Lung Cancer Treatment Decision Making published in the May 2019 issue of Lung Cancer.
• Patient-Clinician Communication Among Patients with Stage I Lung Cancer published in the May 2018 issue of Supportive Care in Cancer.
• It Wasn't as Bad as I Thought It Would Be: A Qualitative Study of Early Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients After Treatment published on November 29, 2017 in BMC Research Notes. 
• Patient-Clinician Communication among Patients with Stage I Lung Cancer: a Prospective Study from an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
• It Wasn’t as Bad as I Thought It Would Be: A Prospective, Qualitative Longitudinal Study of Early Stage Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients After Treatment presented at the 2017 Multidisciplinary Thoracic Cancers Symposium.
• Dumping the Information Bucket: A Qualitative Study of Clinicians Caring for Patients with Early Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer published online on December 22, 2016, in Patient Education and Counseling.
• Information Matters: A Prospective, Qualitative Study of Clinicians Caring for Patients with Early-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer presented at the 58th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
• Self-Efficacy & Decisions in Lung Cancer: Early Stage Lung Cancer Comparative Effectiveness Research Consortium Results presented at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), 2016 Chicago Multidisciplinary Symposium in Thoracic Oncology.
• "Even if I Don’t Remember, I Feel Better”: A Qualitative Study of Early Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients Undergoing Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy or Surgery published in the August 2016 issue of the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.
• Personalized Medicine for Lung Cancer Decisions: Patient-Centered Communication presented at the June 2016 OHSU Knight Cancer Institute Translational Oncology Program Monthly Meeting.
• Even if I Don’t Remember, I Feel Better: A Qualitative Study of Early Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients Undergoing Treatment presented at the 2016 American Thoracic Society International Conference.
• Speaker in the Treatment of Early Stage and Screen-Detected Lung Cancer: A Pro/Con Debate scientific symposium at the 2016 American Thoracic Society International Conference.
• Early Stage Lung Cancer: Difficult Decisions presented at the Virginia Commonwealth University Radiation Oncology Grand Rounds.