AVBCC Highlights

Supply channels are becoming more and more complex, and their models are evolving with an abundance of services to support both the providers and suppliers. Such complexity is causing both challenges and opportunities in this arena. What does the future hold?

Clinical trials have evolved over the years from gated phase 1, 2, and 3 approaches to more blended phase options and single-arm trials. However, we’re still seeing many of the same challenges, such as lack of patient access and diversity, similar or rising cost, and increasing complexity. Our panel of experts discussed the evolution of clinical trials and some unique solutions being considered for the future.

From the Pharmacy Benefits Manager (PBM) Reform Act and 340B Drug Pricing Program to drug shortages and the Inflation Reduction Act, this panel of Washington healthcare experts separated fact from fiction and noise from reality to provide a clear understanding for current legislative priorities.

Cancer treatments are advancing rapidly, thanks to the diligence of researchers and the foundations that support them. Panelists discussed emerging therapies, the impact of funding organizations, and what the future holds for the fight against cancers.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) platforms are becoming essential to the value equation in healthcare and to managing the complexity and range of treatment options within cancer care today. Panelists in this session explored the application of AI and ML technologies and their impact on care, outcomes, cost, providers, pharma, payers, and patients as well as their integrations between electronic medical records and future systems.

The traditional role of oncology physicians as providers who diagnose disease and provide treatment has evolved as healthcare has shifted from a purely clinical discipline to one where patient-centered care is the focus.

Although The Unequal Burden of Cancer: An Assessment of NIH Research and Programs for Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved was published in 1999 and Z-codes were added to the International Classification of Diseases codes in 2015, social determinants of health were barely considered prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moderator Sybil Green, JD, RPh, MHA, of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, admitted at the start of a panel discussion exploring “Disparities and the Impact on Cancer Care” at the 2022 AVBCC annual conference in New York City that this was not a novel topic.