In accordance with the Institute of Medicine’s Standards for Developing Trustworthy Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs), SITC CPGs undergo periodic evaluation to assess if new evidence necessitates modifications to recommendations, treatment algorithms, or other guideline content. This is done through our “SITC Living Guideline” rapid update protocols designed to ensure SITC’s CPGs are up-to-date with cutting-edge thinking and incorporate the leading expert guidance in cancer immunotherapy care – a vital service to treating clinicians and those along the whole cancer care continuum.
All active SITC guidelines are reviewed at least annually for needed updates. The Expert Panel Chairs, in partnership with the SITC guideline development staff, monitor the regulatory landscape and review the available evidence to determine if updates are needed to address changes in clinical practice standards that would aid in optimizing patient care. When updates are needed, a multi-disciplinary panel of experts come together to create new and/or modify existing recommendations with the same rigor used during development of the original publication in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer (JITC).
Through the use of an innovative technology, rapid updates are swiftly integrated into our existing guidelines in a clear and concise manner. An overlay system highlights affected content and provides new text reflecting the updated Expert Panel guidance as well as important supporting information, data, and references, as applicable. The progression of the changes for the rapid updates is shown by the use of a version numbering system that accompanies each new posted update (e.g., update v1.1).
For more information about the SITC Clinical Practice Guidelines or our Living Guideline Rapid Updates, please contact scientificresources@sitcancer.org.