Oncology

Why "tech-enabled" solutions make sense and how the Music City became the a health care hub.

Nathan H. Walcker, MBA, CEO of Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute (FCS) since August 2020, discusses the future of value-based care for the practice as the Oncology Care Model comes to an end.

Amy Valley, PharmD, vice president of clinical strategy and technology solutions, Cardinal Health Specialty Solutions, discusses the Decision Path, a clinical support tool designed to inform oncology providers about drug costs along with clinical information, all embedded into the electronic health record workflow.

Four experts from The US Oncology Network partnered with The American Journal of Managed Care® to present a webinar, “Beyond the OCM: How Are Commercial Payers & Employers Delivering Value-Based Cancer Care?”

Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, executive vice president of Texas Oncology, discusses how enhancements to telemedicine precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic have made lasting and meaningful changes to oncology care, including that these care improvements will persist post pandemic.

The FDA is faster to approve new oncology therapies compared with the European Medicines Agency (EMA); but that speed may have consequences.

Despite a greater risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) due to exposure to chemotherapy and/or radiation, adult survivors of childhood cancer are undertreated for CVD risk factors compared with the general population.

Designing rational spending targets and having small sample sizes are 2 main challenges payers and partners face in the shift toward alternative payment models (APMs), said Ravi B. Parikh, MD, MPP, assistant professor of medical ethics and health policy, assistant professor of medicine, University of Pennsylvania.

As part of its inquiry, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will demand that the 6 largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) submit records and answer questions regarding their business practices.

The approvals were announced by Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), maker of the 2 immunotherapy treatments approved for 1 combination: nivolumab (Opdivo), the first approved PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor, and ipilimumab (Yervoy), which activates the immune system by targeting CTLA-4.

Miruna Sasu, PhD, MBA, president and CEO of COTA Healthcare, discusses 3 ways in which the FDA can provide, and has provided, assistance on the capture of real-word data (RWD) in electronic medical records.

The dysfunction with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) is so troublesome that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is currently investigating how they have driven up costs. Until May 25, the FTC is holding a public comment period on PBM practices.

Across commercial insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid populations, oncology is the top category of spend, and the drug pipeline has increasing specific and complex therapies.

Miruna Sasu, PhD, MBA, president and CEO of COTA Healthcare, delves into how real-world data and evidence generation have changed, both within the past year and since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the Oncology Care Model (OCM) expires at the end of June, Tennessee Oncology will take what it learned from the model and apply it to commercial value-based care arrangements and potentially the next Medicare model, said Leah Owens, DNP, RN, executive director of care transformation at Tennessee Oncology.

Trends in surveillance testing after treatment for colorectal cancer remained relatively stable recently, and patients who overutilized surveillance measures had quicker recurrence detection but higher costs.

The proportion of colonoscopies performed for postpolypectomy surveillance has increased significantly, particularly among older patients with limited life expectancy, raising concern for possible overuse.

Among the fewer than half of patients with cancer who received opioid fills, a relatively small proportion (2.5%) had potentially problematic opioid use.

The FDA sets a tentative date for a decision on authorizing a COVID-19 vaccine in children under 5 years of age; the American Academy of Pediatrics will review all of its guidance for unproven race-based recommendations contributing to health disparities; the FDA rejects 2 China-tested cancer treatments.

Although crowdfunding can be a financial lifeline for young adult patients with serious medical conditions, the nuances regarding the need for and the long-term impact of crowdfunding exposes a facet of the US health care system that must be addressed.

When clinicians consider the patient journey from beginning to end, they begin to understand how difficult it is for patients to access care, said Elaine Goodman, MD, MBA, clinical lead for population health management, Mass General Brigham.

The CEO of the American Oncology Network cited the growing need for financial assistance in announcing the partnership.

From the editor-in-chief of Evidence-Based Oncology.

Coverage from the Association of Community Cancer Centers 2022 Annual Meeting and Cancer Center Business Summit, held in Washington, DC, March 2-4.

Coverage from the 2022 annual meeting of the Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation, which met February 23-25 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Recent steps by FDA to promote the use of real-world evidence are to be commended, but the future demands a broader vision that makes greater use of growing sources of health care information.

Norman E. “Ned” Sharpless, MD, is departing shortly after the launch of Cancer Moonshot 2.0, an initiative that aims to reduce the cancer death rate by at least half over the next 25 years while improving the experience for all those affected by cancer.

No One Left Behind, a program to provide financial assistance and access to cancer care at Carolina Blood and Cancer Care Associates in South Carolina, will be discussed during a session of the Community Oncology Alliance 2022 Community Oncology Conference.

The first in-person Community Oncology Alliance (COA) meeting in 2 years will feature sessions on practice management, health disparities, and more. A virtual option is available.