Blood Cancer United(R) and The US Oncology Network to advance care in community cancer centers. Clinical trials are crucial in the development and testing of new treatment options for patients diagnosed with cancer, determining their safety and efficacy, and establishing a new standard of care. Trials provide data on how novel, investigational drugs work before they are approved by regulatory authorities such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and others. In many instances, clinical trials not only help determine if new treatment approaches are more effective, improving the health-related Quality of Life (hrQoL) of patients and survival oitcomes, investigate if investigational agents have fewer adverse effects or offer a superior treatment compared to the current standard of care; they also explore methods for cancer prevention, test new screening tools, or, using advances in genomic and molecular sequencing, test targeted agents and immunotherapies in specific patient subsets based on biomarkers, or allow researchers to identify which genetic aberrations are most vulnerable to certain drugs. Adaptive clinical trials Traditional clinical trials relied upon a relatively standardized battery of preclinical tests followed by clearly defined and generally understood sequential clinical development steps requiring a large number of patients with extended follow-up to meet discrete predefined regulatory milestones as are necessary for drug approval. Improving Overall Survival Because of the progress made through past clinical trials, survival rates for many cancers have dramatically improved. For example, clinical trials were responsible for raising the survival rate for Hodgkin lymphoma from 15% in 1950 to nearly 90% today. Clinical trials also directly benefit patients participating in them. One reason is that participating patients are generally more closely monitored. This collaborative partnership approach empowers patients to play an active role in their care, while, at the same time, contributing to scientific knowledge, crucial for the ongoing development of novel treatment options. A new collaboration between Blood Cancer United(R)* and The US Oncology Network aims to expand clinical trial education and navigation, helping more patients across the country explore trials as a possible treatment option. Blood Cancer United, the largest global nonprofit dedicated to blood cancer patient support, research, and advocacy, and The US Oncology Network, an organization of independent, community-based providers supported by McKesson, will partner to enhance education about blood cancer clinical trials in select cities, including how to find and access suitable trials. The collaboration will include personalized clinical trial education via Blood Cancer United's Clinical Trial Support Center, as well as clinical trial matching through The US Oncology Network's partnership with Sarah Cannon Research Institute, and patient navigation services to facilitate participation in clinical trials for patients with all types of blood cancer. "We are committed to supporting patients by identifying and removing barriers to clinical trial enrollment," said Gwen Nichols, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Blood Cancer United. "Collaborations such as this one have great potential to improve patient outcomes directly." A pilot program Blood Cancer United and The US Oncology Network have launched a two-year pilot program at participating sites across three states. Patients at the participating sites will have access to the Clinical Trial Support Center's resources by the end of 2025. "It's incredibly powerful to see our organizations collaborate around a shared goal - strengthening cancer care and access to clinical trials close to home, in communities across the nation," noted Devon Womack, president of The US Oncology Network. "By expanding education around clinical research, we're not just increasing trial enrollment - we're opening doors to new possibilities, empowering patients with more treatment options, and ultimately, offering renewed hope in their fight against cancer," Womack concluded. Note: * Blood Cancer United(R) formerly The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Clinical trials I-SPY TRIAL: Neoadjuvant and Personalized Adaptive Novel Agents to Treat Breast Cancer (I-SPY) - ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT01042379 Reference [1] Porcher R, Lecocq B, Vray M; participants of Round Table N° 2 de Giens XXVI. Adaptive methods: when and how should they be used in clinical trials? Therapie. 2011 Jul-Aug;66(4):319-26, 309-17. English, French. doi: 10.2515/therapie/2011042. Epub 2011 Aug 19. PMID: 21851793. [2] Wang H, Yee D. I-SPY 2: a Neoadjuvant Adaptive Clinical Trial Designed to Improve Outcomes in High-Risk Breast Cancer. Curr Breast Cancer Rep. 2019 Dec;11(4):303-310. doi: 10.1007/s12609-019-00334-2. Epub 2019 Nov 20. PMID: 33312344; PMCID: PMC7731787. [3] Wang T, Villanueva DJ, Banerjee A, Gifkins D. Reporting and representation of participant race and ethnicity in phase III clinical trials for solid tumors. Future Sci OA. 2025 Dec;11(1):2458415. doi: 10.1080/20565623.2025.2458415. Epub 2025 Jan 30. PMID: 39885684; PMCID: PMC11792851. [4] Wang T, Banerjee A, Gifkins D. Reporting and representation of race and ethnicity data in phase III clinical trials for hematological malignancies. Future Sci OA. 2025 Dec;11(1):2563483. doi: 10.1080/20565623.2025.2563483. Epub 2025 Sep 22. PMID: 40980857; PMCID: PMC12456206. [5] van der Graaf WTA, Heiss NS, Hynes CL, Keller SP, Weinman A, Blay JY, Franco P, Giles RH, Lacombe D, Schlatter P, Thomas DM, van Waalwijk van Doorn-Khosrovani SB, Williamson M, Plummer R. Overcoming the barriers to treatment of rare cancer patients in the era of precision oncology: A call to action. Cancer Treat Rev. 2025 Nov;140:103013. doi: 10.1016/j.ctrv.2025.103013. Epub 2025 Aug 14. PMID: 40902364. [6] Borate U, Pugh K, Waller A, Welkie RL, Huang Y, Bewersdorf JP, Stahl M, DeZern AE, Platzbecker U, Sekeres MA, Wei AH, Buckstein RJ, Roboz GJ, Savona MR, Loghavi S, Hasserjian RP, Fenaux P, Sallman DA, Hourigan CS, Della Porta MG, Nimer S, Little RF, Santini V, Efficace F, Taylor J, Garcia-Manero G, Odenike O, Kim TK, Halene S, Komrokji RS, Griffiths EA, Greenberg PL, Xu ML, Xie Z, Bejar R, Sanz GF, Patnaik MM, Figueroa M, Carraway HE, Abdel-Wahab O, Starczynowski D, Padron E, Boultwood J, Gore S, Daver NG, Churpek JE, Majeti R, Bennett JM, List AF, Brunner AM, Zeidan AM. Reducing clinical trial eligibility barriers for patients with MDS: an icMDS position statement. Blood. 2025 Mar 27;145(13):1369-1381. doi: 10.1182/blood.2023023717. PMID: 40146152; PMCID: PMC11969261. Featured image courtesy (C) 2017 - 2025 Fotolia/Adobe. Used with permission.

AON's ability to continue attracting established practices demonstrates its value proposition in the community oncology space, potentially strengthening its market position against competitors like US Oncology and OneOncology.

The US Oncology Network to spend $1,660,000.00 to occupy 3,197 square feet of space in Houston Texas. The US Oncology Network to spend $1,660,000.00 to occupy 3,197 square feet of space in Houston Texas.Houston, Texas — According to state and local development sources, The US Oncology Network plans to invest $1,660,000.00 to build out 3,197 square feet of new space in Houston. The company plans to occupy the new space at 7500 Fannin Street Suite 100a in Houston, on or about February 1, 2026. According to the company website Every day, The US Oncology Network helps over 2,500+ providers deliver value-based, integrated care for patients close to home. Through The Network, these independent doctors come together to form a community of shared expertise and resources dedicated to advancing local cancer care and to delivering better patient outcomes. The Network provides doctors with access to coordinated resources, best business practices, and the experience, infrastructure and support of McKesson