Interviews

Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) within breast cancer settings can be instrumental in helping patients feel heard and improving their overall quality of care, said Oluwadamilola "Lola" Fayanju, MD, MA, MPHS, FACS, chief of breast surgery at Penn Medicine.

Tom Robinson, vice president of global access at JDRF, lists 3 pieces of advice for groups looking to create indexes for other conditions similar to the Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) Index.

William Jacout, MD, a medical oncologist and researcher at the Institut du Cancer de Montpellier Val d'Aurelle in France, shares what providers should keep in mind when using genomics as a diagnostic and treatment decision-making tool for patients with breast cancer.

Initial data on NTLA-2001, which is a novel investigative intravenous agent that works to prevent development of cardiac transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis by targeting the TTR gene and TTR protein levels, were presented at this year’s American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in Chicago.

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-low breast disease has a number of new treatments available, and more providers need to be aware of how it differs from other forms of breast cancer, according to Adam Brufsky, MD, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

Jose P. Leone, MD, director of the program for breast cancer in men at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, shares why patients and providers need to pay more attention to how breast cancer impacts male patients.

Dawn L. Hershman, MD, an oncologist from Columbia University, shared insight into the current challenge of ensuring drug adherence within clinical trials and how this adherence can impact the quality of care for patients in real-world settings.

Irene M. Kang, MD, from City of Hope, shared some of the results from her analysis of cognitive impairment in women with breast cancer who participated in the RxPonder study, which assessed which patients would benefit most from chemotherapy.

There is new data coming out on complementary and alternative therapies for dementia, including supplements, mindfulness techniques, exercise, music therapy, and more, said Kalin Clifford, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS, FASCP, associate professor, Geriatrics Division, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Jerry H. Hodge School of Pharmacy.

Some of the latest trends in the health-system pharmacy space are ones that have already been around for a while, and organizations will need to understand how to address them at the local level, explained Marie A. Chisholm-Burns, PharmD, PhD, MPH, MBA, FCCP, FASHP, FAST, executive vice president and provost at Oregon Health and Science University.

Once patients with HIV start treatment, pharmacists can play a key role in addressing patient accessibility and affordability of HIV treatments and promoting adherence, said Dena Behm Dillon, PharmD, AAHIVP, HIV clinical pharmacy specialist, University of Iowa Health Care.

There are many risk factors for developing postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), but a simplified risk score can help with assessing those risk factors, said Jawad N. Saleh, PharmD, BSPharm, BCCCP, BCPS, clinical manager of pharmacy services, Hospital for Special Surgery.

Pharmacists can play an important role in dispelling myths about vaccines, as well as identifying patients who are eligible for vaccinations that they haven’t yet received, said Jacinda C. Abdul-Mutakabbir, PharmD, MPH, AAHIVP, assistant professor of pharmacy practice, Loma Linda University.

Intravenous (IV) robotic technology brings advantages for pharmacy staff, but there are also accuracy issues with the technology. In addition, this technology will not be replacing a pharmacy technician job, said Scott Soefje, PharmD, MBA, BCOP, FCCP, FHOPA, director of pharmacy cancer care and assistant professor of pharmacy, Mayo Clinic.

Neil Iyengar, MD, from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, is expecting updates on therapies to fight human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2)–positive breast cancer and novel antibody drug conjugates at the upcoming San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS).

From comparing outcomes, it is known that cemiplimab has the potential to improve responses among patients who have cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), although many important questions remain, explained Neil D. Gross, MD, FACS, head and neck surgeon and director of clinical research in the Department of Head and Neck Surgery at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

The first priority isn't limiting the rise in type 1 diabetes (T1D) prevalence, it's limiting the rise of missing prevalence, said Tom Robinson, vice president of global access at JDRF.

Liz Lightstone, MBBS, PhD, FRCP, professor of renal medicine for the Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, discussed the influence of genetics and background on the care management of lupus nephritis.

About 1 in 5000 males are born with hemophilia, according to Steven W. Pipe, MD, a professor of pediatrics and pathology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and medical director of the Pediatric Hemophilia and Coagulation Disorders Program.

Marie A. Chisholm-Burns, PharmD, PhD, MPH, MBA, FCCP, FASHP, FAST, executive vice president and provost at Oregon Health and Science University, is receiving the award, which is presented to individuals who demonstrate excellence in pharmacy practice leadership.

Melissa O'Connor, PhD, MBA, RN, FGSA, FAAN, endowed professor in Community and Home Health Nursing, M. Louise Fitzpatrick School of Nursing, Villanova University, and director, Gerontology Interest Group, noted that a comprehensive assessment of each patient is necessary to develop individualized care plans that can achieve better outcomes and keep older adults in the home setting.

During an Institute for Value-Based Medicine® event held in New York City, Samyukta Mullangi, MD, MBA, fellow in medical oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discussed how disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic are ushering in health care delivery reform.

At the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) 2022 Midyear Clinical Meeting & Exposition, Angela M. Hill, PharmD, CPh, RPh, professor and associate dean of clinical affairs; project director, WE-CARE, University of South Florida Taneja College of Pharmacy, will receive the ASHP-ABHP Joint Leadership award for her leadership in addressing health equities.

Jana K. Dickter, MD, associate clinical professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, City of Hope, addresses what health systems need to do to improve HIV therapy accessibility and affordability.

Data on empagliflozin in chronic kidney disease (CKD) showed the drug had similar efficacy across subgroups, but more data is needed to really understand the benefit of the drug in CKD, said Jennifer Green, MD, professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, member of Duke Clinical Research Institute, and EMPA-KIDNEY collaborator.

Now that long-acting injectables are approved, the next big concern is patient access, said Kevin N. Astle, PharmD, BCPS, BCACP, AAHIVP, CDES, assistant professor at the University of South Florida Taneja College of Pharmacy.

As dean for medical education at the University of Chicago, Vineet Arora, MD, MAPP, takes a longitudinal view of the training pathway with an eye toward equity in opportunity and system-level improvement of processes.

Liz Lightstone, MBBS, PhD, FRCP, professor of renal medicine for the Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, discussed how the potential teratogenic effects of novel therapies being investigated for lupus nephritis can impede clinical trial recruitment for women of childbearing age.