APAO 2026: Mark Honor on the Role of PAs as Oncology Care Managers

Physician associates (PAs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) serve as pillars in the modern multidisciplinary oncology care team, managing complex patient needs and treatment-related toxicities. At the 29th Annual Oncology Symposium for the Healthcare Provider, presented by the Association of PAs in Oncology (APAO) from August 13 to 16, 2026, at the New York Marriott Marquis, clinical leaders highlighted how advanced practice providers (APPs) optimize patient care.

The four-day symposium welcomed over 200 healthcare professionals with the goal of sharing best practices. Among the featured sessions was a clinical presentation on Friday, August 14, 2026, titled "Managing Common Adverse Events in the Oncology Patient," delivered by Mark Honor, PA-C, of Moffitt Cancer Center. In an Oncology Nursing News interview conducted at the symposium, Honor discussed the collaborative healthcare model and emphasized the autonomous role PAs and NPs play in managing patient care throughout the cancer treatment journey.

The Collaborative Care Model

According to Honor, the structural model in most oncology practices relies on a distinct division of labor. "The physicians really need to see new patients," Honor explained. "They need to make new diagnoses and then they hand those patients off to us."

Under this model, the physician's primary specialty lies in diagnosing the malignancy and establishing the initial therapeutic strategy. These plans are typically guided by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) clinical practice guidelines. "That is their lane," Honor noted, referring to this diagnostic phase.

The PA as the Care Manager

Once the physician establishes the treatment protocol, the primary day-to-day management of the patient transitions to the PA. Honor described his role as managing the patient's daily toll and therapeutic side effects. "Once they hand that patient off to me, I'm the manager," Honor said.

The responsibilities of PAs and NPs during active cancer therapy are vast. Honor highlighted that Pas routinely manage key treatment-related side effects and complications, including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, infections, and blood transfusions.

These day-to-day clinical events frequently arise from the moment a patient starts cancer therapy until they undergo restaging. Restaging, as Honor defined it, is the formal reevaluation of the patient's overall disease status.

Optimizing Physician Resources

By placing PAs in charge of routine symptom management, clinics can improve efficiency and expand clinical access for new patients. Honor observed that in many clinical scenarios, patients do not need to see the physician on a routine basis during active treatment. This is because the physician's expertise is heavily centered on making decisions regarding major treatment-related changes.

"If their disease is going good, if they're in remission, technically they really don't even need to see the physician because I'm managing the case," Honor stated. This collaborative structure allows PAs and NPs to practice at the top of their clinical licenses while freeing up physicians to focus on new oncology consultations.