Articles

Cost-related factors are a chief reason for patients declining to participate in a clinical trial, a survey of 4 community oncology practices showed.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) stated that comparative effectiveness research (CER) should draw on approaches currently used for clinical trials, highlighting its stake in the matter by pointing out that CER is integral to oncology research.

Atlanta, GA—Offering practical advice about how and when to use patient-reported outcomes (PROs) to make supportable claims in the marketing of new drugs and products, a workshop directed mainly to new product developers at the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research meeting in Atlanta clarified some of the basic issues surrounding the use of this type of research instrument.

Chicago, IL—Using genetic and pharmacogenomic information to treat patients with cancer in optimal fashion has advanced in the past several years, and the clinical utility of this approach should continue to improve as genetic research continues, said several panelists at a 2010 ASCO session on evaluating the evidence and marketing of genomic tests.

Chicago, IL—The cost-effectiveness of adding bevacizumab (Avastin) to first-line chemotherapy for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer is comparable to that of many other therapies for metastatic cancer.

Chicago, IL—Active surveillance is a cost-effective option for low-risk clinically localized prostate cancer.

dding trastuzumab to standard cisplatinum/fluoropyrimidine chemotherapy for patients with HER2-positive advanced gastric cancer results in a median survival of 13.8 months, compared with 11.1 months with chemotherapy alone, according to a new study (Lancet. 2010;376 [9742]:687-97. Epub 2010 Aug 19).

Chicago, IL—Taking part in clinical research poses administrative, logistic, and financial challenges to community oncology practices, but also presents these organizations with opportunities for a more active role in shaping patient care.

Silver Spring, MD—Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) are required from some drug manufacturers as part of a new US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation designed to draw the attention of sponsors, providers, and patients to the likelihood of severe adverse events accompanying certain drugs and biologic agents.

On September 26, 2019, the FDA approved daratumumab (Darzalex; Janssen) in combination with bortezomib, thalidomide, and dexamethasone for the treatment of newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma who are eligible for autologous stem-cell transplant (ASCT). The FDA granted this application priority review.