Clinical

A report released by the California Association of Health Plans projects a huge cost expenditure even if a small proportion of the state's hep C patients are treated with the potentially curative medications.

New research studies show that anti-inflammatory agents can improve survival as well as quality of life in cancer patients.

Physicians at the Brigham and Women's Hospital have published results from a proof-of-concept study that used mass spectrometry in almost real-time to detect and delineate pituitary tumors from normal tissue.

The California Department of Public Health has announced participation in a pilot project with St. Joseph Health to better understand cancer trends in California.

Drug manufacturers often fail to stick to the 15-day timeframe of reporting serious adverse events to the FDA, a new study in JAMA Internal Medicine reports.

At the ongoing annual ACS NSQIP Conference in Chicago, physicians from the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia presented a risk score tool that can predict a person's dependence on mechanical ventilation post surgery.

This week Bristol-Myers Squibb's phase 3 nivolumab study ended early because renal cell carcinoma patients were experiencing significantly better overall survival, the American Society of Clinical Oncology called for the inclusion of more geriatric patients in trials, and Medicaid expansion states are finding more people enrolling than they planned.

The Sanofi and Regeneron therapy, to be marketed as Praluent, was among the most-anticipated FDA approvals of the year. Late-day reports put pricing at $40 a day wholesale, well above estimates, although insurers will seek discounts.

The FDA approved Daklinza (daclatasvir) for use with sofosbuvir to treat hepatitis C virus genotype 3 infections.

A study published in Nature Medicine has identified a gene signature that can predict cancer patient outcomes across a wide spectrum of malignancies.

The study has policy implications since Americans 65 and older are eligible for Medicare, and trustees reported this week that the hospital fund will only be solvent until 2030.

A study in JAMA Oncology has found that chemotherapy for patients with end-stage cancer was associated with worse quality of life near death while they still retained their ability to perform many life functions.

While the study found differences in hazard ratio for age-specific survival, improved care and better treatment options might have resulted in increased survival, the authors deduce.

ASCO's Breast Cancer Guideline Advisory Group and Clinical Practice Guideline Committee have published an updated guideline in the Journal of Clinical Oncology on using breast cancer biomarkers to guide clinical decisions when treating advanced metastatic breast cancer.

The findings have policy importance in the developing world, where low birth weight is often followed by rapid transition to Western lifestyles.

By 2050 more than 28 million additional baby boomers will develop Alzheimer's disease and the cost of caring for them will account for nearly one-fourth of Medicare spending by 2040, according to research presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference.

Zarxio (filgrastim-sndz), manufactured by Sandoz as a biosimilar to Amgen's Neupogen, has finally received marketing approval from a federal appeals court.

Merck (MSD) has announced that its PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab (Keytruda) was approved by the European Commission for the treatment of advanced (unresectable or metastatic) melanoma in adults.

A new program from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review will produce public reports that include a full analysis of the comparative effectiveness, the cost-effectiveness, and the potential budget impact of new drugs.

The study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, examined antibiotic prescribing pratices within the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Using a state-transition probability analysis, this study assessed the long-term outcomes and economic implications of combinatorial pharmacogenomic testing for managing patients with major depressive disorder who were nonresponsive to treatments.

Researchers at UCLA have discovered that inhibiting SGLT2 in pancreatic and prostate adenocarcinomas can reduce cancer cell survival.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology has issued a position statement in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, calling for federal agencies and the cancer research community to broaden clinical trials to include older adults.

The Exchange Pulse Report published by Express Scripts predicts that compared with 2014, the year 2015 will see a greater number of younger enrollees signing up on healthcare exchanges, which could potentially drive down drug costs for specialty medications.

Nivolumab proved superior to everolimus in improving overall survival in previously treated patients.

A gene known to cause cancer may also play a role in determining obesity, according to researchers at the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center.

The demand for oral parity for oncology medications is back up for vote in the Senate in North Carolina.

Viruses, not bacteria, are the most commonly detected pathogen in US adults hospitalized with pneumonia; however, neither viruses nor bacteria were detected in the majority of these patients despite current diagnostic tests.

A study published in JAMA Oncology questions aggressive local treatment strategies in men with low-risk prostate cancer.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago, physicians introduced some new lymphoma treatments as they described their personal experience with using them during the session, "Incorporating Novel Agents Into Lymphoma Therapy: Value in Everyday Practice."