Welcome to the first ever virtual COSA ASM!

We are excited to welcome delegates virtually to this year's COSA ASM! Focusing on Quality & Safety, Implementation Science and Cardio-oncology as program themes, this year there is something for everyone in our multi-disciplinary membership! The translation of research into practice combines the dissemination of evidence and the implementation of it into clinical practice. Implementation science is currently recognised as a significant gap in research and practice, and delays in the translation of evidence into practice lead to inferior outcomes for patients and increased costs of care. Value-based care and optimised care strategies are rapidly emerging in this era of ever-increasing costs in oncology. The themes of Quality & Safety and Implementation Science complement each other perfectly. The cardiovascular health of cancer patients is a very significant issue for patients and survivors, where gains in survival may be countered by increased mortality and morbidity due to cardiovascular (CV) toxicity. Cardio-oncology is an emerging discipline that identifies, prevents and treats CV disease related to cancer therapies. Potential toxicities have moved beyond traditionally acknowledged anthracycline-related toxicity and effects after intra-thoracic radiotherapy, to the appreciation of the risks of immunotherapy agents and targeted therapies. There can also be synergistic impacts on CV health due to the interaction of a patient’s pre-existing risk factors and co-morbidities, as well as cancer treatment exposures. As such, CV toxicity is relevant across the age spectrum in cancer patients and across multiple tumour sites- allowing us to feature many cancers in the ASM program. Whilst cardio-oncology has progressed as a field internationally, with dedicated services, research and training programs; in Australia, progress has been constrained by a lack of clinical services and limited research collaboration between cardiologists and cancer professionals. The 2020 COSA ASM is one step to addressing this gap and we warmly welcome all delegates new and returning to what is sure to be a stimulating conference!