Tumor expression of PD-L1 has consistently predicted Âresponse and survival outcomes in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), whereas the role of PD-L1 in immune cells is unclear, said ÂEdward B. Garon, MD, Director, Thoracic Oncology Program, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, at the 2019 ASCO-SITC Clinical Immuno-Oncology Symposium.
A chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy that targets CD19 and CD22 molecules has demonstrated safety and efficacy, in patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic lymphoma, with response rates consistent with CAR T-cell therapies that target CD19 alone.
Although many quality measures exist in oncology, few efforts have been undertaken to prioritize, measure, and report quality and costs for an entire region. A recent multiyear, multistakeholder effort to characterize quality of care and costs for Washington State oncology practices revealed that increased quality may be associated with a reduced cost of care in oncology.
Approvals for new delivery methods for Herceptin and Cinvanti, and a new indication for Lonsurf close out the month of February in the FDA’s oncology-related activity.
There’s really only one way to identify how patients are coping with serious illness: by asking them, according to Thomas J. Smith, MD, FACP, Director of Palliative Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD.
Patients can be successfully managed with minimal opioid medication after urologic oncology surgery, said Kerri Stevenson, MN, NP-C, RNFA, CWOCN, Lead Advanced Practice Provider – Interventional Radiology, Stanford Health Care, CA, at the 2018 ASCO Quality Care Symposium. She presented results from a 4-month study conducted at Stanford Health Care. Over the course of the study, patients were able to decrease their opioid use after surgery by 46%, without compromising pain control.
Although the cost of care can have severe effects on patients with cancer and their families, oncologists rarely address financial toxicity, according to Hanna K. Sanoff, MD, MPH, Medical Director, University of North Carolina (UNC) NC Cancer Hospital Clinics.
The PD-L1 inhibitor durvaluÂmab (Imfinzi) showed an overall survival benefit in patients with unresectable stage III non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the phase 3 PACIFIC trial.
Bone metastases are exceedingly common among patients with cancer and can significantly affect quality of life. Approximately 65% to 75% of patients with advanced breast or prostate cancer have bone metastases, which can lead to devastating complications, according to Winston Tan, MD, FACP, Chair, Associated Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL.
Anxiety is a common symptom in patients with advanced cancer, and is associated with reduced quality of life, increased symptom burden, poor medication adherence, and suboptimal treatment decisions at the end of life. Anxiety also tends to cluster with disease- and treatment-related side effects such as fatigue, pain, breathlessness, nausea, vomiting, and sleep disturbance.
