Clinical

Improving the healthcare services that an organization provides can be challenging unless one gathers information on the service, collates it, improves on it, and implements the changes in the field. A panel of experts invited by Evidence-Based Oncology discussed processes that help identify the most valuable metrics and the importance of making them relevant for use in the clinic.

What we're reading, June 20, 2016: employers are cutting back on wellness benefits; new apps and websites provide birth control prescriptions to women; and Novartis pledges to triple the number of biosimilar drugs on the market by 2020.

Lee Schwartzberg, MD, FACP, chief of Division of Hematology Oncology and professor of medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, discusses side effects seen with PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors as well as the recent USPSTF screening recommendations for breast cancer.

Researchers at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that increases in unemployment in California during the Great Recession were associated with an increased risk for weight gain among 1.7 million public school children in the state.

The healthcare ecosystem can be a very complex place, and it’s important to remember that a patient sits at the center, explained David M. Cordani, president and CEO of Cigna Corp., during a general session on the second day of America’s Health Insurance Plans’ Institute & Expo.

HHS recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Cuba’s Public Ministry of Health on June 13, marking a historic moment for both countries since the re-establishment of diplomatic relations in 2015.

This week, the top stories in managed care included study results presented at the 76th Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association from the SWITCH and LEADER trials, a recommendation for a smarter way to screen for prostate cancer, and researchers found physicians underutilize medications to treat opioid addiction.

Growing antibiotic resistance is a significant global problem. But steps are being taken to apply brakes on the rise of "superbugs."

Advances in cancer treatment provide more options for patients but add complexity to treatment decisions. HealthHelp’s Integrative Oncology program coordinates care to maximize efficiency and ensure optimal outcomes for cancer patients.

What we're reading, June 17, 2016: California's insurance commissioner comes out in opposition of the merger between Anthem and Cigna; local governments push for drug makers to pay for drug take-back programs; and the CDC releases numbers of Zika-related birth defects in the United States.

The new guideline, similar to the previous version, recommends screening for CRC for those 50 to 75 years of age and leaves the decision for screening in those 76 to 85 years of age on the individual. However, for the 50 to 75 age group, the USPSTF leaves the choice of the test on the individual, which is a departure from the previous guideline.

Black women with BRCA gene mutations are far less likely to receive preventive surgery than white or Hispanic women with the BRCA gene mutation.

According to research published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, immunotherapy right after chemotherapy can piggy back on the immune modifications caused by the chemotherapy, to improve response to treatment in ovarian cancer.

What we're reading, June 15, 2016: opioids also linked to heart-related deaths and fatalities other than overdoses; judge overrules Federal Trade Commission's efforts to block merger of Advocate Health Care and NorthShore University HealthSystem in Illinois; and using social media to monitor patients outside of the healthcare setting.

A collaborative effort by urologists and public health specialists from various healthcare systems around the country has found that PSA levels measured in midlife (45 to 59 years of age) are a strong predictor of future lethal prostate cancer.

A new study, published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, has found that chemotherapy administered in patients with stage I disease, following a complete resection, can have a significant impact on their median 5-year overall survival.

While there are FDA-approved medications proven to help curb opioid addiction, not many physicians are taking full advantage of it.

What we're reading, June 14, 2016: CMS has proposed requiring Medicare hospitals follow new antibiotic controls; New York poised to expand access to breast cancer screening; and clinical trials are seeing more success.

What we're reading, June 13, 2016: the World Health Organization is recommending women in Zika-infected areas delay pregnancy; one FDA regulator feels too many drug makers are chasing the same treatments in cancer care; and risky behaviors among American teenagers are down.

A survey conducted among members of the South Carolina Academy of Family Physicians found that although most family physicians reported that they discussed low-dose computed tomography screening (LDCT) with their patients, referrals were low

Vitamin D may help reduce the risk of diabetes side effects associated with atypical antipsychotics, according to a recent study published in Scientific Reports.

Two studies presented at Heart Failure 2016 and the 3rd World Congress on Acute Heart Failure held in Florence, Italy, hold good news for patients with heart failure who get flu shots.

Treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy remains in flux with the FDA delaying a decision on Sarepta's treatment and Biomarin discontinuing development on its own drug.

Results presented at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress have confirmed that Systemic Lupus Erythematosus can increase the risk of developing cervical cancer in women.

Prescription drug monitoring programs have been associated with a decreased number of written prescriptions for the highly-addictive and most recently abused drug.

The Colombian government is forcing pharmaceutical giant Novartis to lower prices of its leukemia medicine, imatinib (Gleevec).

The process for approving biosimilars has been moving slowly, but Aimee Tharaldson, PharmD, senior clinical consultant of emerging therapies at Express Scripts, foresees them as having the potential to lower costs for the industry and hopes the approval process will pick up speed.

Only half of US veterans who died from cancer received palliative care, while the use of hospice depended upon the care environment. Overall, there was a gap between the percentage of patients who received palliative care and recommended use.

A group in Israel presented a study that evaluated the price trend of 30 anticancer agents following their launch, and found that prices may increase by as much as 44% even after adjusting for inflation.

The field of measurement in Mycosis Fungoides/Sézary syndrome type cutaneous T-cell lymphoma lacked a specific quality-of-life measure to describe patient experience or guide treatment decisions. Using an online platform with an engaged patient community, we developed and psychometrically validated a new measure in just under a year.