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    Challenging Oncology Therapies With Moonshot Price Tags

    With: Pramod John, PhD

    A Q&A with Pramod John, PhD, CEO of VIVIO Health, a specialty drug management company in San Leandro, CA, that aims to provide better outcomes at lower costs; pramod@viviohealth.com Originally published December 13, 2017 Q: Some American pharmaceutical companies are well-known for pricing drugs at “whatever the market will bear.” In oncology, some specialty drugs seem to have price tags completely unrelated to the… Read more »

  •   Emma Shtivelman, PhD

    Excerpt:

    “In a new study by Yale Cancer Center, scientists suggest that as the number of clinical trials in cancer immunotherapy grows exponentially, some caution should be exercised as we continue to better understand the biology of these new therapeutic targets.  The findings are published today in the journal Cell.

    “Researchers around the world have been racing to create therapies that unleash the power of our immune systems against cancer. The most successful of these immunotherapies, which target a molecular pathway known as PD-1/PD-L1, have brightened the landscape for many people suffering with lung cancer and other types of tumors.”

    Go to full article published by Yale Cancer Center on Dec 20, 2018.

    If you’re wondering whether this story applies to your own cancer case or a loved one’s, we invite you to get support from Cancer Commons.

  •   Emma Shtivelman, PhD

    Excerpt:

    “ASCO and Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) applaud the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) recent revision of its clinical trial protocol template to broaden eligibility criteria for cancer clinical trials. The protocol template was expanded to help increase the opportunity for participation in NCI-funded clinical trials for patients with certain health-care conditions, as well as to provide an opportunity for patients younger than age 18 to participate in adult clinical trials in certain circumstances.”

    Go to full article published by The ASCO Post on Dec 11, 2018.

    If you’re wondering whether this story applies to your own cancer case or a loved one’s, we invite you to get support from Cancer Commons.

  •   Emma Shtivelman, PhD

    Excerpt:

    “In recent years, many Americans have embraced vitamin D and fish oil pills, their enthusiasm fueled by a steady trickle of suggestive research studies linking higher levels of vitamin D with lower rates of cancer and other ills, and fish consumption with reduced heart disease.

    “Now a large and rigorous government-funded randomized trial — the only such study of omega-3 fish oils ever carried out in healthy adults, and the largest trial ever done of high-dose vitamin D — has found the supplements do not lower cancer rates in healthy adults. Nor do they reduce the rate of major cardiovascular events, a composite of heart attacks, strokes and deaths from cardiovascular disease. The trial is of the kind considered the gold standard in medicine.”

    Go to full article published by The New York Times on Nov 10, 2018.

    If you’re wondering whether this story applies to your own cancer case or a loved one’s, we invite you to get support from Cancer Commons.

  •   Emma Shtivelman, PhD

    Excerpt:

    A new study from Helsinki University Hospital, University of Helsinki and the Finnish Cancer Registry shows that survival after glioblastoma has improved since the millennium. The improvement in survival was, however, modest in elderly patients, raising concerns whether current treatment strategies are optimal for this patient group.

    “Glioblastoma is the most common brain , and one of the deadliest cancers known. Unfortunately, there is no cure for these rapidly progressing tumors.”

    Go to full article published by Medical Xpress on Oct 16, 2018.

    If you’re wondering whether this story applies to your own cancer case or a loved one’s, we invite you to get support from Cancer Commons.

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    Who Owns Patient Data in Clinical Research?

    With: Charlotte J. Haug, MD, PhD, MSc

    A Q&A with Charlotte J. Haug, MD, PhD, MSc, International Correspondent, New England Journal of Medicine; Senior Scientist, SINTEF Techology and Society; Adjunct Affiliate, Stanford Health Policy; Oslo, Norway; charlottejohanne@gmail.com Originally published October 25, 2017 Q: Many people are coming to believe that active patient participation will be a key to more rapid movement forward in cancer research. Data sharing can help. But who owns the… Read more »

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    Might Cancer Be a Metabolic Disease?

    With: Thomas N. Seyfried, PhD

    A Q&A with Thomas N. Seyfried, PhD, Professor of Biology, Boston College Q: As a geneticist, you know that the genomic makeup of cancers recently has captivated much of the scientific community with new knowledge and new treatments. And yet, cancer outcomes remain dismal for many patients. You have written about cancer from a very different perspective. Why do you consider cancer to be… Read more »

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    Patient-Reported Outcomes Could Transform Cancer Care

    With: Jared Adams MD, PhD

    A Q&A with Jared Adams MD, PhD, Chief Science Officer at Self Care Catalysts; jared@selfcarecatalysts.com Q: Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) are health care outcomes, such as symptoms or quality of life, reported directly by a patient. In recent years, PROs have emerged as a potentially powerful new way to understand cancer outcomes. Could PROs lead to the next breakthrough in our understanding of cancer? A: When biochemist and… Read more »

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    Do You Have Pain, Cancer, or Diabetes? Your PBM May Now Be Your Doctor for These Illnesses.

    With: Charles L. Bennett, MD, PhD, MPP

    A Q&A with Charles L. Bennett, MD, PhD, MPP; Smart State and Frank P and Jose M Fletcher Chair, Medication Safety and Efficacy, Smart State Center of Economic Excellence, University of South Carolina and the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina; Charleston, South Carolina; Email: charlesleebennett@gmail.com Originally published December 27, 2017 Q: The opioid epidemic is now a public health… Read more »

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    Why the 21st Century Cures Act is a Good Thing

    With: Mary Woolley

    A Q&A with Mary Woolley, President and CEO of Research!America Q: You attended the December 2016 signing by President Obama of the 21st Century Cures Act and are recognized to be a strong supporter. Yet harsh criticism of it has quickly appeared in JAMA, BMJ, a variety of other venues, as well as on these pages. Please tell our readers why this is good legislation… Read more »