Dr. Adil Daud, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Co-Director of the Melanoma Program, UCSF, discusses cost and the payer/provider relationship around metastatic melanoma medications.
vemurafenib (Brand name:
Dr. Daud discusses the use of Zelboraf) and ipilimumab (Brand name: Yervoy), the FDA-approved medications used in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. The medications are expensive, but Dr. Daud shares there have been little issue covering these specific drugs since they are so effective. Dr. Daud hopes that these are only the first class of this drug pathway extending life expectancy, as he hopes they can eventually bring metastatic melanoma to a chronic disease state and not a death sentence.
Drug Interactions With Ibrutinib Common, Linked to Higher Infection Risk in CLL
September 16th 2025Drug interactions with ibrutinib may not shorten survival when managed carefully, though the significant increase in infection-related hospitalizations tied to CYP3A inhibitors signals an urgent need for closer monitoring, dose adjustment, and proactive infection prevention strategies.
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