Plasma Cell Disorders and Disparities in Hem/Onc with Benjamin Derman, MD

In this episode, Benjamin Derman, MD, discusses his work on addressing disparities in hematology and oncology, the impact the pandemic has had on these issues and much more.

• Welcome to another exciting episode of Oncology Overdrive :13
• About Derman :17
• The interview 1:33
• The field you're in is super, super specialized … can you tell me a little bit about your journey into how you went into medicine, how you went into this field and then how you started working on some disparities work as well? 1:46
• Do you feel like you're now in a place where you have to explain things to people where it sounds like science fiction, but it actually is really a powerful way to treat a lot of cancers? 8:36
• How did you start working in the disparities space and why do you think it's so important that we really focus on this as a topic that we address within oncology and hematology? 12:53
• How do we change how we are treating patients from a system level? A national level? An institutional level? 18:52
• Do you think, in the last year and a half, COVID has helped or hurt this mission? 21:21
• We talk about informed decision making and patients think they are making an informed decision, although the information they have is from a bunk source. 27:04
• A discussion on how to guide patients, risk levels/factors and navigating life 27:53
• What are your thoughts on testing for spike antibodies? 33:12
• The impact of telehealth and telemedicine on patients during the pandemic 39:36
• Derman's one pearl 40:59
• How to contact Derman 41:58

Benjamin Derman, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine in the University of Chicago Department of Medicine's section of Hematology/Oncology.

We'd love to hear from you! Send your comments/questions to Dr. Jain at oncologyoverdrive@healio.com. Follow us on Twitter @HemOncToday and @ShikhaJainMD. Derman can be reached on Twitter @BDermanMD.

Disclosures: Derman reports no relevant financial disclosures. Jain reports she is a paid freelance writer for Lippincott.