- Center on Health Equity & Access
- Clinical
- Health Care Cost
- Health Care Delivery
- Insurance
- Policy
- Technology
- Value-Based Care
Avoid Unnecessary Cancer Screening Following Venous Thromboembolism, Says NEJM Study
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine says a CT scan following a first venous thromboebolism event may not benefit in detecting cancer.
An NEJM study found that the prevalence of occult cancer was low among patients who had a first unprovoked venous thromboembolism, and routine screening with CT of the abdomen and pelvis was not clinically beneficial.
The study was conducted because unprovoked venous thromboembolism is thought of as an earliest sign of cancer, and up to 10% of patients with unprovoked venous thromboembolism receive a diagnosis of cancer within a year of the event and then gradually decreases. While the hypothesis is that early screening and intervention can reduce cancer-associated mortality, there's not enough data to support the practice. This has resulted in a wide variation in policy and clinical practice, write the authors. How intense should the intervention be and what should be included as a part of the screening strategy? These are some of the questions that remain unanswered.
In this study, the authors conducted a randomized clinical trial to assess the efficacy and safety of adding CT of the abdomen and pelvis to a limited screening strategy for occult cancer.
High HSP60 Expression Signals Poor Prognosis, Aggressive Tumors in Ovarian Cancer
January 16th 2025High heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) expression in patients with ovarian cancer is associated with larger tumors, advanced stages, and worse survival outcomes, highlighting its potential as a prognostic biomarker.
Read More
Real-World Evidence Confirms the Benefits of JAK Inhibitors in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis
January 16th 2025This systematic review of real-world observational studies demonstrated the effectiveness of Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors in improving treatment adherence, persistence, clinical outcomes, and patient-reported outcomes among US patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Read More
