New Guideline: RT for Gastric Cancer; Decoding the 2026 MPFS Final Rule; RPT abstracts due Friday
November 19, 2025
| ASTRO publishes guideline on radiation therapy for gastric cancer |
| ASTRO’s first guideline focused on radiation therapy for gastric cancer provides guidance in a variety of clinical settings including patients with nonmetastatic resectable, borderline resectable, and unresectable disease, locoregionally recurrent disease, and metastatic disease including oligometastases. For a more detailed summary of the key points from the guideline, see ASTRO’s news release and read the guideline in Practical Radiation Oncology. |
| Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancers Symposium: Register and save! | |
 |
The 2026 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancers Symposium takes place February 19-21, 2026, at the JW Marriott Desert Springs in Palm Desert, California. Co-sponsored by ASTRO, the American Head and Neck Society, the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer, the program provides the most up-to-date information on multidisciplinary therapies, the latest clinical research, new treatment strategies, scientific breakthroughs and more. A former attendee shared, “This meeting provides great networking opportunities and updates on current and future therapies.” Review the schedule of events and register by December 5 to take advantage of the discounted advance rate! |
| Friday deadline to submit abstracts for the RPT Symposium |
| Hurry, the deadline to submit your abstract for the new Radiopharmaceutical Symposium is this Friday, November 21! We seek abstracts that address important and novel questions related to the areas of radiopharmaceutical therapy. Visit the website for more information and to submit your abstract. |
| New podcast available – Decoding the 2026 MPFS Final Rule: What Radiation Oncologists Need to Know | |
 |
The 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) Final Rule brings the most significant changes to radiation oncology reimbursement in over a decade. Together, Adam Greathouse, JD, ASTRO Director of Health Policy, and guest Amar Rewari, MD, MBA, FASTRO, ASTRO Health Policy Council Chair, Chief of Radiation Oncology for Luminis Health, break down what you need to know about the MPFS Final Rule, from the overhaul of treatment delivery codes to CMS’s new efficiency adjustment. |
| Whether you’re a physician or administrator, this episode offers practical insights to help you prepare for these changes. The podcast is available to download or stream on www.astro.org/podcasts, on iTunes and Spotify. | |
| CMS finalizes limited change for the 2026 Quality Payment Program |
| On Friday, October 31, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the 2026 Quality Payment Program (QPP) final rule that includes modest policy changes to the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), the MIPS Value Pathways (MVP) framework, including the Advancing Cancer MVP, and the Advanced Alternative Payment Model program. Find additional information and details in ASTRO’s summary. |
| CALL TO ACTION: Tell Congress to DELAY Medicare’s so-called “efficiency” cuts |
| The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently finalized its Calendar Year (CY) 2026 rule for the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and included a provision that will cut physician reimbursement again. Use our simple and fast grassroots alert system; tell your representatives to stop the “efficiency adjustment” and ensure providers are compensated adequately! |
| New brochures available – order for your patients and office |
| Now's a great time to restock your patient education materials! Of ASTRO’s collection of 17 brochures, updated brochures include Radiopharmaceutical Therapy for Cancer and Radiation Therapy for Head and Neck Cancer (available in both English and Spanish). View the full array of ASTRO patient brochures and order for your facility! |
| Bylaws vote closes Friday, act now to weigh in |
| Two days remain to review and cast your vote on changes to the existing ASTRO bylaws. Updates include decoupling the bylaws “Amendment Procedure” process from the Annual Business Meeting and updating the ASTRO Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council name, in response to recent Executive Orders and broader ASTRO strategic alignment. Voting is open until 5:00 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, November 21. The ballot and instructions will appear once you log in with your email address and password. |
| Enjoy these recent posts from ASTRO’s Blog |
| A Dose of Poetry - Matthew J. Farrell, MD, MFA, Poetry Editor, International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics shares more on the first ever ASTRO 2025 Poetry Workshop and updates on the Red Journal's newest section.
Elevating Standards in Radiopharmaceutical Therapy with APEx - Randi Kudner, ASTRO’s Assistant Director of QI, sat down with Minesh P. Mehta, MD, and Adeel Kaiser, MD, from the Miami Cancer Institute, to hear more on how accreditation helped their practice, supported their multidisciplinary collaborations, and elevated the role of physics and dosimetry in a rapidly growing field. Re-Envisioning ROI: A Unified Future for Research in Radiation Oncology - Gita Suneja, MD, MS, FASTRO, President, Board of Trustees, Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI), shares her excitement for the re-envisioned ROI, as a unified foundation driving innovation in radiation medicine and patient resources. |
