Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

Online Course

Cancer Research UK

Future Learn

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Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

What is the course about?
Prerequisites & Facts
Cost, Certificate & Degree
Reviews & Experiences

What is the course about?

Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

The course Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments is an online class provided by Cancer Research UK through Future Learn. It may be possible to receive a verified certification or use the course to prepare for a degree.

Discover the science of targeted cancer treatments and immunotherapies on this course designed for clinical cancer research nurses

Course description

Deepen your understanding and improve communication with patients and colleagues
5 weeks

Update 17/04/2020:
Due to the current situation, instead of opening a new run of the course in May as planned, we’re keeping this run of the course open so as many learners as possible can benefit from its educational content and previous comments from the course educators, mentors and other learners.
You may notice little or no facilitation from the course’s lead educators and mentors at this time. However, we’d encourage you to follow and join in discussion with other learners, share your experience and knowledge, and hear different perspectives to enhance your learning experience. We hope that you will enjoy interacting with and learning from each other in this way. Don’t forget to comment, reply to other learners and ‘like’ comments.
New from February 2020: The world of cancer treatment is changing rapidly, therefore we’ve added new content on immunotherapies, such as checkpoint inhibitors, CAR T cells, PARP inhibitors and CDK inhibitors.
Although the course is open to all, it has been designed primarily for clinical research nurses working with patients on clinical cancer trials, along with clinical cancer research staff and specialist cancer nurses. See more information below.
Thanks to ground-breaking research over the past 20 years, new, more targeted treatments and immunotherapies have been developed that are changing the way we treat cancer, and providing new hope for patients. Join us and discover the science behind these treatments and learn through quizzes, interviews, articles and patient case studies. Each week you’ll have the opportunity to engage in discussion with other learners on key issues. You’ll learn from experts in the field and gain a deeper understanding of how targeted cancer treatments and immunotherapies work to support your patients.

What are targeted treatments and how are they used today
Biological concepts behind targeted cancer treatments and immunotherapies
Principles of cell communication and cancer
Treatments for solid tumours that block cell communication pathways (monoclonal antibodies and kinase inhibitors)
Communicating to patients about targeted cancer treatments
Side effects of treatments and how they impact patients’ quality of life
The unique properties of blood cancers and the targeted therapies used to treat them
The relationship between cancer and the immune system
Various immunotherapy strategies including checkpoint inhibitors, CAR-modified T cells and cancer treatment vaccines
How immunotherapy is reported in the news and managing patient expectations of treatment
The challenges of drug resistance and the implementation of biomarker tests
The future of targeted cancer treatments

Understand the science behind targeted cancer treatments and how they work
Improve confidence in communicating to patients and colleagues about targeted cancer treatments, immunotherapy and biomarkers
Appreciate why so called ‘targeted treatments’ cause side effects and understand how they impact patients’ quality of life
Recognise some of the current challenges and future potential of targeted cancer treatments

This course has been designed primarily for clinical cancer research nurses, along with other members of the clinical cancer research team. It can go towards your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and/or revalidation with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
The course is also relevant for and may be of interest to specialist cancer nurses and other health professionals including pharmacists and medical/science graduates studying this topic.
A basic understanding of how cells work is needed to get the most out of this course. Some experience working in cancer is also recommended.

Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK (CRUK) are the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research.

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Prerequisites & Facts

Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

Course Topic

Cancer, Healthcare & Medicine, Nursing

University, College, Institution

Cancer Research UK

Course Skill Level

see course summary

Course Language

English

Place of class

Online, self-paced (see curriculum for more information)

Degree

Certificate

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Degree & Cost

Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

To obtain a verified certificate from Future Learn / Cancer Research UK you have to finish this course or the latest version of it, if there is a new edition. The class may be free of charge, but there could be some cost to receive a verified certificate or to access the learning materials. The specifics of the course may have been changed, please consult the provider to get the latest quotes and news.

Cancer Research UK

Demystifying Targeted Cancer Treatments

provided by Future Learn

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