Oncology

While the study found differences in hazard ratio for age-specific survival, improved care and better treatment options might have resulted in increased survival, the authors deduce.

A special issue of Evidence-Based Oncology, a publication of The American Journal of Managed Care, covers clinical sessions, updates on new trial designs, and coverage of the discussion of "value" in cancer care from the 2015 meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The meeting took place May 29 to June 2, 2015, at Chicago's McCormick Convention Center.

ASCO's Breast Cancer Guideline Advisory Group and Clinical Practice Guideline Committee have published an updated guideline in the Journal of Clinical Oncology on using breast cancer biomarkers to guide clinical decisions when treating advanced metastatic breast cancer.

Zarxio (filgrastim-sndz), manufactured by Sandoz as a biosimilar to Amgen's Neupogen, has finally received marketing approval from a federal appeals court.

Merck (MSD) has announced that its PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab (Keytruda) was approved by the European Commission for the treatment of advanced (unresectable or metastatic) melanoma in adults.

Researchers at UCLA have discovered that inhibiting SGLT2 in pancreatic and prostate adenocarcinomas can reduce cancer cell survival.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology has issued a position statement in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, calling for federal agencies and the cancer research community to broaden clinical trials to include older adults.

Instead of making patients suffering from life-limiting illnesses choose between hospice care and curative care, CMS will test coverage that allows individuals to receive palliative and curative treatment concurrently.

In the first clinical study to demonstrate the importance of precision medicine in lymphomas, researchers determined that patients with a specific molecular subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma responded better to ibrutinib than patients with a different molecular subtype.

Nivolumab proved superior to everolimus in improving overall survival in previously treated patients.

A gene known to cause cancer may also play a role in determining obesity, according to researchers at the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center.

The demand for oral parity for oncology medications is back up for vote in the Senate in North Carolina.

A presscast held prior to the annual meeting of the American Society of Clincal Oncology presented interim results from the phase 3 ELOQUENT-2 trial. Adding elotuzumab to lenalidomide and dexamethasone reduced the risk of disease progression by 30% in patients with relapsed-refractory multiple myeloma.

The Annual Report to the Nation on Status of Cancer, product of a collaboration between The American Cancer Society, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Cancer Institute, and North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, has been published.

A study published in JAMA Oncology questions aggressive local treatment strategies in men with low-risk prostate cancer.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago, physicians introduced some new lymphoma treatments as they described their personal experience with using them during the session, "Incorporating Novel Agents Into Lymphoma Therapy: Value in Everyday Practice."

Immuno-oncology continues to deliver results in oncology, as seen from results presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab significantly improved survival in melanoma, while elotozumab showed encouraging results in relapsed refractory multiple myeloma.

A late-breaking abstract session early at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology presented datd for nivolumab in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma, non-squamous cell non-small cell lung cancer, and for tumors harboring mismatch repair deficiency.

The ACA eliminated patient cost sharing for evidence-based preventive care, yet this policy has not resulted in substantial increases in colonoscopy and mammography utilization.

Jennifer Malin, MD, medical director for oncology at Anthem, explains how both physicians and payers struggle with the high cost of some cancer treatment drugs.

During the session "Health Services Research and Quality of Care" at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, oncologists discussed factors that influence clinical trial participation and the cost of cancer care.

Young adult cancer survivors who had received their first rounds of cancer treatment between the ages of 20 and 44 were 1.5 times more likely to have more hospitalizations after remission than the general public.

Taking into account all of the factors a patient may be dealing with is 1 way to address the growing cost of cancer care and its associated problems, like medication or treatment nonadherence.

A very popular session on the "value" of cancer care during the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) brought together a patient representative, an oncologist, an ASCO representative, and a payer.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Robin Zon, MD, discussed the growing administrative burdens in oncology practice with the movement towards value-based payment.

The retrospective study, conducted in centers across Germany, found that when colorectal cancer was detected during a screening colonoscopy, patients lived nearly 2 years longer than if it was detected during a diagnostic colonoscopy.

A poster presented at the 2015 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology shared encouraging phase 3 survival data from the RECOURSE trial, after evaluating specific geographic subgroups.

During the Oncology Stakeholder's Summit 2015 hosted by AJMC, healthcare experts discuss the value of introducing palliative and end-of-life care discussions early in oncology care.

The American Journal of Managed Care invited healthcare experts to discuss the challenges associated with managing and paying for newer and more expensive agents in oncology, during the Oncology Stakeholders Summit.

The top story of the week was Aetna's purchase of Humana, which signals a growth in government managed care. In addition, the 340B drug discount program came under fire after a report from the Government Accountability Office.