Oncology

While the cost of introductory cancer drugs is increasing rapidly, there has not been a commensurate increase in benefit, according to Peter Bach, MD, with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

According to Dr Amy Cyr from the Siteman Cancer Center at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, while Oncotype DX is both prognostic and predictive, none of the other tests currently available have shown both capabilities.

The findings of this study, conducted in Finland, may prove significant for the assessment of breast cancer prognosis and treatment planning.

Two out of three people with metastatic disease survive 5 years or more, the report shows. The authors hope the data can help researchers develop better cancer control programs.

When the first National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines were developed 20 years ago, even the participating members who were there at the beginning were skeptical they would be able to come to an agreement and build something lasting.

The study, published in JAMA Oncology, found that low risk breast and prostate cancer patients received unnecessary imaging overall, with a higher rate observed in the North East region of the country.

The study, published in the journal Cancer found that increasing screening rates to 80% by 2018 would reduce projected colorectal cancer incidence rates by 17% and mortality rates by 19% during short-term follow-up, and by 22% and 33%, respectively, during extended follow-up. Those reductions would amount to a total of 277,000 averted new cancers and 203,000 averted colorectal cancer deaths from 2013 through 2030.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Guidelines may be successful historically, but the network isn't resting on its laurels, Robert Carlson, MD, chief executive officer, said at the NCCN 20th Annual Meeting.

During his keynote speech at the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)'s 20th Annual Conference, Chief Executive Officer Robert Carlson, MD, spent the majority of his time discussing the NCCN Guidelines because they are the core of its services.

A new analysis published by the RAND Corporation suggests strategies that the pharmaceutical industry could offer payers as they try to cover the front-loaded cost of newer breakthrough drugs.

The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, found that while the complete absence of meat in the diet had the most impact on reducing the risk of colorectal cancer, those who added seafood to the vegetarian diet-pescovegetarians-faired better than the nonvegetarians.

The study, published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, found that patients treated with definitive concurrent chemotherapy and radiation therapy for stage 3 non-small cell lung cancer have longer overall survival when treated by highly experienced facilities, either academic or community cancer centers.

The 23-gene diagnostic panel called myPath Melanoma could be used in addition to microscopy to distinguish the benign form of the disease from malignant disease.

The awards will be presented at ASCO's annual meeting to be held in Chicago in May this year.

The recommendation has not come easy for Roche. Back in October 2014, NICE had rejected Gazyravo based on inconsistencies in the filing, which were then addressed by the drug manufacturer. Subsequently, NICE struck a deal with Roche to provide the drug to NHS at a reduced price.

While the PBM Express Scripts declared plans to bring cancer drug plans down, the drug manufacturers and investors aren't too worried about the high cost of some of the specialty drugs, according to this article in Bloomberg.

Within 5 years of a breast cancer diagnosis, patients are at an increased risk of developing thyroid cancer, according to a new study, which was presented at the Endocrine Society's 97th annual meeting.

Commissioned by The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the results of the study help make the case for placing limits on out-of-pocket costs for patients that would relieve their financial burden without a significant impact to insurers.

A study, published in the journal Cancer, found that women with a family history of both breast and prostate cancer among first-degree relatives have an almost 2-fold increase in risk of developing breast cancer themselves.

One of the criticisms, which came from ASCO, points to the absence of consideration for patient heterogeneity that can result in physicians being penalized for providing patient-centered treatment.

While sunitinib failed as adjuvant treatment in advanced kidney cancer, this phase 2 study presented at the ongoing annual meeting of The Endocrine Society found that in patients with advanced thyroid cancer, sunitinib treatment resulted in median progression free survival of about 8 months. The authors think their results create sufficient evidence to initiate a phase 3 trial of the drug in thyroid cancer patients.

New oncology payment models, 340B pricing and disproportionate share hospitals, and the significant difference in reimbursement rates for cancer care services are just some of the challenges faced by community oncology clinics. How do patients make informed decisions on where to go for care?