Physicians

Departments / Divisions

• Medicine / Medicine - Oncology
• School of Nursing

Address
DUMC 3436
Durham, NC 27710

Appointment Telephone
919-684-8964

Office Telephone
919-684-8964

Fax Telephone
919-684-5325

Training

• MD, Duke University School of Medicine, 1994

Residency

• Internal Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, 1997

Fellowship

• Hematology/Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, 2001

Other Training

• Palliative Care, Flinders University of South Australia, 2003

Clinical Interests
Melanoma, cancer pain management, symptom control, supportive oncology, general hematology/oncology, palliative medicine

Research Interests
Amy Abernethy, MD, is Associate Professor with tenure in the Division of Medical Oncology at Duke University School of Medicine and School of Nursing, Director of the Duke Cancer Care Research Program, and Medical Director of Oncology Quality, Outcomes and Patient-centered Care in Duke University Health System.  

Dr. Abernethy founded and directs Duke Cancer Care Research Program (DCCRP), which conducts a diverse portfolio of studies focused on improving the symptoms and quality of life of cancer patients at all stages of disease and survivorship. DCCRP has grown exponentially from a staff of two in early 2006 to over 50 investigators, full-time staff, and active members today.  DCCRP clinical trials address a range of patient-centered concerns spanning breathlessness, nausea, pain, anorexia-cachexia syndrome, insomnia, and fatigue, as well as management of melanoma and the need for psychosocial support.  DCCRP studies feature electronic data management using an information technology (IT)-facilitated system for collecting and storing patient-reported outcomes (PROs).  

A national expert in cancer health policy and comparative effectiveness research (CER), Dr. Abernethy focuses on the use of IT-enabled systems to simultaneously inform clinical care, research, and quality improvement activities – while improving the patient’s experience of health and healthcare.  In conjunction with new research and IT-development at Duke and in DCCRP, she is developing new models of real-time data collection, integration, and analysis; combined with best practices for evidence generation and implementation, these methods will support the transformation to learning health systems on both the local and national level. With substantial progress in demonstrating new methods and models “on the ground,” Dr. Abernethy is a leading voice for developing “rapid learning systems” to advance cancer care in America and globally.

Dr. Abernethy is an independent National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded investigator whose most recent federal grant (2010) confers $7.1 million for the creation of a national research cooperative group in palliative care, as well as conduct of its first collaborative clinical trial and development of evaluative metrics.  Additional recent grants include funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to: develop the linked informatics systems to support registries that promote cancer-related personalized CER; train a new cadre of investigators in cancer-related CER; train new clinician researchers in Tanzania in HIV-related malignancies, and; continue development of an electronic PRO interface for adverse event monitoring.  Funding from the NIH, NCI, National Institute for Nursing Research (NINR), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), philanthropy, and industry supports an annual DCCRP budget of over $2.5 million.

Industry Relationships and Collaborations (What's this?)

This physician (or a member of their immediate family) has a working relationship (i.e. consulting, research, and/or educational services) with the companies listed below. These relations have been reported to the health system leadership and, when appropriate, management plans are in place to address potential conflicts.

• Amgen, Inc.
• Helsinn
• Novartis
• Proventys, Inc.

Representative Publications
Abernethy AP, Currow DC. Culture and Financing Influence Palliative Care Services, Study Populations, and Generalizability of Research Findings. J Palliat Med. 2008 Mar;11(2):146. (2008) Abstract

Abernethy AP. Pc-facs. J Palliat Med. 2008 Mar-Apr;11(2):258-61. (2008) Abstract

Castel LD, Saville BR, Depuy V, Godley PA, Hartmann KE, Abernethy AP. Racial differences in pain during 1 year among women with metastatic breast cancer: a hazards analysis of interval-censored data. Cancer. 2008 Jan 1;112(1):162-70. (2008) Abstract

Currow DC, Agar M, Sanderson C, Abernethy AP. Populations who die without specialist palliative care: does lower uptake equate with unmet need? Palliat Med. 2008 Jan;22(1):43-50. (2008) Abstract

Currow DC, Agar M, Tieman J, Abernethy AP. Letter to the editor: Multi-site research allows adequately powered palliative care trials; web-based data management makes it achievable today. Palliat Med. 2008 Jan;22(1):91-2. (2008) Abstract

Currow DC, Ward AM, Plummer JL, Bruera E, Abernethy AP. Comfort in the last 2 weeks of life: relationship to accessing palliative care services. Support Care Cancer. 2008 Mar 12. (2008) Abstract

Keefe F, Abernethy AP, Wheeler J, Affleck G. Don't ask, don't tell? Revealing placebo responses to research participants and patients. Pain. 2008 Apr;135(3):213-4. (2008) Abstract

Robinson TM, Alexander SC, Hays M, Jeffreys AS, Olsen MK, Rodriguez KL, Pollak KI, Abernethy AP, Arnold R, Tulsky JA. Patient-oncologist communication in advanced cancer: predictors of patient perception of prognosis. Support Care Cancer. 2008 Jan 15. (2008) Abstract

Uronis HE, Currow DC, McCrory DC, Samsa GP, Abernethy AP. Oxygen for relief of dyspnoea in mildly- or non-hypoxaemic patients with cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Cancer. 2008 Jan 8. (2008) Abstract

Abernethy A. Palliative care pharmacotherapy literature summaries and analyses. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother. 2007;21(1):71-8. (2007) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Currow DC, Fazekas BS, Luszcz MA, Wheeler JL, Kuchibhatla M. Specialized palliative care services are associated with improved short- and long-term caregiver outcomes. Support Care Cancer. 2007 Oct 25. (2007) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Hanson LC, Main DS, Kutner JS. Palliative care clinical research networks, a requirement for evidence-based palliative care: time for coordinated action. J Palliat Med. 2007 Aug;10(4):845-50. (2007) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Nixon A, Fine PG, Peppin JF, Crossno RJ, Bull J. Palliative care pharmacotherapy literature summaries and analyses. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother. 2007;21(3):91-7. (2007) Abstract

Abernethy AP. Pc-facs. J Palliat Med. 2007 Dec;10(6):1425-30. (2007) Abstract

Castel LD, Abernethy AP, Li Y, Depuy V, Saville BR, Hartmann KE. Hazards for pain severity and pain interference with daily living, with exploration of brief pain inventory cutpoints, among women with metastatic breast cancer. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2007 Oct;34(4):380-92. (2007) Abstract

Currow DC, Fazekas B, Abernethy AP. Oxygen use--patients define symptomatic benefit discerningly. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2007 Aug;34(2):113-4. (2007) Abstract

Currow DC, Plummer J, Frith P, Abernethy AP. Can we predict which patients with refractory dyspnea will respond to opioids? J Palliat Med. 2007 Oct;10(5):1031-6. (2007) Abstract

Currow DC, Stevenson JP, Abernethy AP, Plummer J, Shelby-James TM. Prescribing in palliative care as death approaches. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2007 Apr;55(4):590-5. (2007) Abstract

Dixon KE, Keefe FJ, Scipio CD, Perri LM, Abernethy AP. Psychological interventions for arthritis pain management in adults: a meta-analysis. Health Psychol. 2007 May;26(3):241-50. (2007) Abstract

Friedman JY, Curtis LH, Hammill BG, Dhillon JK, Weaver CH, Biswas S, Abernethy AP, Schulman KA. The Medicare Modernization Act and reimbursement for outpatient chemotherapy: do patients perceive changes in access to care? Cancer. 2007 Nov 15;110(10):2304-12. (2007) Abstract

Martin MG, Ardati AK, Dunlay SM, Abernethy AP, Blazing MA. Small cell lung cancer presenting as a paraneoplastic syndrome characterized by recurrent episodic hypotension and bradycardia: case report. Chest. 2007 Jan;131(1):290-3. (2007) Abstract

Mock V, Abernethy AP, Atkinson A, Barsevick AM, Berger AM, Cella D, Cimprich B, Cleeland C, Eisenberger MA, Escalante CP, Hinds P, Jacobsen PB, Kaldor P, O'Connor T, Otis-Green SA, Piper BF, Pirl WF, Rugo HS, Sabbatini P, Stewart FM, Wagner LI. Cancer-related fatigue. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2007 Nov;5(10):1054-78. (2007) Abstract

Pollak KI, Arnold RM, Jeffreys AS, Alexander SC, Olsen MK, Abernethy AP, Sugg Skinner C, Rodriguez KL, Tulsky JA. Oncologist communication about emotion during visits with patients with advanced cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2007 Dec 20;25(36):5748-52. (2007) Abstract

Shelby-James TM, Abernethy AP, McAlindon A, Currow DC. Handheld computers for data entry: high tech has its problems too. Trials. 2007;8:5. (2007) Abstract

Shelby-James TM, Currow DC, Phillips PA, Williams H, Abernethy AP. Promoting patient centred palliative care through case conferencing. Aust Fam Physician. 2007 Nov;36(11):961-4. (2007) Abstract

Stevenson JP, Currow DC, Abernethy AP. Frameworks for prescribing in comorbid illness. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2007 Aug;34(2):117-8. (2007) Abstract

Stevenson JP, Currow DC, Abernethy AP. The broader implications of managing statins at the end of life. J Palliat Care. 2007;23(3):188-9; author reply 189. (2007) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Arnold RM. PC-FACS: a real-time evidence resource for busy palliative care clinicians. J Palliat Med. 2006 Feb;9(1):24-8. (2006) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Currow DC, Hunt R, Williams H, Roder-Allen G, Rowett D, Shelby-James T, Esterman A, May F, Phillips PA. A pragmatic 2 x 2 x 2 factorial cluster randomized controlled trial of educational outreach visiting and case conferencing in palliative care-methodology of the Palliative Care Trial [ISRCTN 81117481]. Contemp Clin Trials. 2006 Feb;27(1):83-100. (2006) Abstract

Currow D, Abernethy AP. A framework for managing comorbid conditions in palliative care. J Palliat Med. 2006 Jun;9(3):620; authors reply 621-2. (2006) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP, Shelby-James TM, Phillips PA. The impact of conducting a regional palliative care clinical study. Palliat Med. 2006 Dec;20(8):735-43. (2006) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP. Frameworks for approaching prescribing at the end of life. Arch Intern Med. 2006 Nov 27;166(21):2404. (2006) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP. Reader questions benefit of nebulized opioids. Oncol Nurs Forum. 2006 May;33(3):513; author reply 513-4. (2006) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP. The broader implications of diabetes management at the end of life. Palliat Med. 2006 Sep;20(6):638-9. (2006) Abstract

Koropchak CM, Pollak KI, Arnold RM, Alexander SC, Skinner CS, Olsen MK, Jeffreys AS, Rodriguez KL, Abernethy AP, Tulsky JA. Studying communication in oncologist-patient encounters: the SCOPE Trial. Palliat Med. 2006 Dec;20(8):813-9. (2006) Abstract

Shelby-James T, Abernethy AP, Currow DC. Evidence in palliative care research: how should it be gathered? Med J Aust. 2006 Feb 20;184(4):196-7. (2006) Abstract

Sladek R, Tieman J, Fazekas BS, Abernethy AP, Currow DC. Development of a subject search filter to find information relevant to palliative care in the general medical literature. J Med Libr Assoc. 2006 Oct;94(4):394-401. (2006) Abstract

Uronis HE, Currow DC, Abernethy AP. Palliative management of refractory dyspnea in COPD. Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis. 2006;1(3):289-304. (2006) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Currow DC, Frith P, Fazekas B. Prescribing palliative oxygen: a clinician survey of expected benefit and patterns of use. Palliat Med. 2005 Mar;19(2):168-70. (2005) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Shelby-James T, Fazekas BS, Woods D, Currow DC. The Australia-modified Karnofsky Performance Status (AKPS) scale: a revised scale for contemporary palliative care clinical practice [ISRCTN81117481]. BMC Palliat Care. 2005 Nov 12;4:7. (2005) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP. Quality palliative care: practitioners' needs for dynamic lifelong learning. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2005 Apr;29(4):332-4. (2005) Abstract

Keefe FJ, Abernethy AP, C Campbell L. Psychological approaches to understanding and treating disease-related pain. Annu Rev Psychol. 2005;56:601-30. (2005) Abstract

Mitchell GK, Abernethy AP, , . A comparison of methodologies from two longitudinal community-based randomized controlled trials of similar interventions in palliative care: what worked and what did not? J Palliat Med. 2005 Dec;8(6):1226-37. (2005) Abstract

Tieman JJ, Abernethy AP, Fazekas BS, Currow DC. CareSearch: finding and evaluating Australia's missing palliative care literature. BMC Palliat Care. 2005 Aug 8;4:4. (2005) Abstract

Currow DC, Abernethy AP, Fazekas BS. Specialist palliative care needs of whole populations: a feasibility study using a novel approach. Palliat Med. 2004 Apr;18(3):239-47. (2004) Abstract

Stevenson J, Abernethy AP, Miller C, Currow DC. Managing comorbidities in patients at the end of life. BMJ. 2004 Oct 16;329(7471):909-12. (2004) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Currow DC, Frith P, Fazekas BS, McHugh A, Bui C. Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled crossover trial of sustained release morphine for the management of refractory dyspnoea. BMJ. 2003 Sep 6;327(7414):523-8. (2003) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Currow DC, Frith P, Fazekas BS, McHugh A, Bui C. Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled crossover trial of sustained release morphine for the management of refractory dyspnoea. BMJ. 2003 Sep 6;327(7414):523-8. (2003) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Samsa GP, Matchar DB. A clinical decision and economic analysis model of cancer pain management. Am J Manag Care. 2003 Oct;9(10):651-64. (2003) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Samsa GP, and Matchar DB.  A clinical decision and economic analysis model of cancer pain management.  American Journal of Managed Care 2003; 9:  121-134. (2003)

Currow DC, Abernethy AP, and Fazekas BS.  Palliative needs of whole populations: a comprehensive population approach to determining need.  Palliative Medicine.  In Press 2003. (2003)

Abbott KH, Sago JG, Breen CM, Abernethy AP, Tulsky JA. Families looking back: one year after discussion of withdrawal or withholding of life-sustaining support. Crit Care Med. 2001 Jan;29(1):197-201. (2001) Abstract

Abbott KH, Sago JG, Breen CM, Abernethy AP, Tulsky JA. Families looking back: one year after discussion of withdrawal or withholding of life-sustaining support. Crit Care Med. 2001 Jan;29(1):197-201. (2001) Abstract

Abernethy AP, Phillips PA, and Currow DC.  Applying the evidence to improve the quality of our system of cancer care: what do the words mean?  Cancer Forum 2001; 5: 109-111. (2001)

Breen CM, Abernethy AP, Abbott KH, Tulsky JA. Conflict associated with decisions to limit life-sustaining treatment in intensive care units. J Gen Intern Med. 2001 May;16(5):283-9. (2001) Abstract

Breen CM, Abernethy AP, Abbott KH, Tulsky JA. Conflict associated with decisions to limit life-sustaining treatment in intensive care units. J Gen Intern Med. 2001 May;16(5):283-9. (2001) Abstract