Role of the teenage and young adult blood and marrow stem-cell transplant clinical nurse specialist

Internationally, there has been increased recognition for specialist services for teenagers and young adults (TYA) with cancer, reinforced by key documents, such as the TYA cancer service guideline (CSG7) from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (2005) and the Blueprint of Care for Teenagers & Young Adults with Cancer (Smith et al, 2016). Despite this, there is a paucity of guidance and a sparse evidence base as to how service provision should evolve to address the need for such specialist services. Consequently, there is a need to devise creative approaches to service provision, including the development of new roles. An additional challenge in providing adequate care to TYAs with cancer is complicated by the heterogenous nature of this patient group (Smith et al, 2016), consequently it is arguable that a holistic approach tailored to the individual should be paramount.