Oncology Featured Articles
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The Real Miracle Of Drug Development: Immunity From Inflation!
2/12/2016
They say there are two certainties in life: death and taxes. If we were to add a third certainty to that list, it might be that we generally have inflation as well. But if rising prices on consumer goods are a fact of life, why are some people surprised when the cost of prescription drugs increase as well?
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Are Patient Surveys The Missing Link To Successful Recruitment & Retention?
12/3/2015
While patient recruitment and retention have been an issue in the delay and expense of clinical trials for decades, patient centricity has at least temporarily moved to the forefront in the clinical space. Although often discussed as two separate issues, there is no question the two are intertwined. Integrating the patient voice in the protocol design process will certainly lead to better recruitment outcomes and patients who are more willing and able to adhere with a study for its duration.
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How To Increase Patient Enrollment By 600 Percent
11/19/2015
The process of getting patients to engage in a clinical trial is a headache that will keep many recruitment specialists awake at night. The Cancer Research Institute notes only two to three percent of oncology patients who are eligible for a clinical trial actually participate. Many are not even aware that trials are an option for them. More importantly, 95 percent of cancer patients might be missing out on a potentially lifesaving new treatment.
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Is The Pharma Industry Really An Enemy?
10/15/2015
I consider myself to be a fan of the pharmaceutical industry. This is not simply because I write for a media group that covers the pharma industry. I feel like I was a fan even before taking on my current job. It may have started a few years ago when an ailment of old age (I’m 52) began to inconvenience me and disrupt my sleep. One little white pill taken once per day has now relieved me of that issue. So, while there are many industries that bring happiness and efficiencies into my life, only one of those industries has the potential to save the lives of patients with life threatening illnesses, and ease the suffering of others. That is the pharmaceutical industry.
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Reduce Turnaround Time For Global Oncology Clinical Trials
10/6/2015
End-to-end anatomic pathology and histology solutions and the power of biomarkers combine to reduce turnaround time for global oncology clinical trials.
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Pricing Human Lives…And The Drugs That Save Them
7/8/2015
As professionals in the pharma industry, we often face questions regarding the high price of medicines and the greed of the companies producing them. Some items are easy to put a price on. Most of the products we use on a daily basis have a price determined by the manufacturing cost plus a profit markup. When you talk about a drug that took 14 years and billions of dollars to produce, the question of price becomes a bit more difficult. That conversation is complicated further when the product in question can ease human pain and suffering, or perhaps even prolong a life.
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Clinical Design on the Frontlines in the War Against Cancer
6/3/2015
The War on Cancer, by some accounts, was declared in 1971 when President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act. It seems that we may now have a battle plan that someday could lead to victory. The weapons are a series of drugs that have unleashed the power of the immune system to fight the deadly disease.
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Astounding Results Of Combination Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy Tempered By Discussions Of Rising Cost Of Cancer Care
5/31/2015
The third day of ASCO highlighted the science and remarkable advances emerging from the new immunotherapies, but excitement was tempered by concerns over cancer costs.
The plenary session began with a lecture by Dr. James Patrick Allison of M.D. Anderson, and a review of his work in immunotherapy that started in 1995. This work revolutionized cancer treatment, with three new IO drugs on the market and more in development. His talk laid the foundation for Dr. Jedd D. Wolchok of Memorial Sloan Kettering who presented the much-anticipated results from a Phase III randomized trial comparing the efficacy and safety of Bristol Myers Squibb’s nivolumab (NIVO) alone or combined with ipilimumab (IPI) versus IPI alone in treatment-naïve patients with advanced melanoma.
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Packed Session Illustrates Reason For Excitement Around Advanced Cancer Therapies
5/30/2015
There are many reasons to be excited by the science being presented at this year’s American Society for Clinical Oncology meeting. The data presented at a special section on Saturday morning opened the door to a future when tumor genetics and biomarkers will change the way we think of about cancer treatment. As a physician working in clinical development, there is also the excitement around intriguing new questions that when answered could lead to life-saving treatments unimaginable just a decade ago.
More than 2,000 people packed into a cavernous conference hall at 8 a.m. on Saturday – demonstrating the high level of shared interest in emerging immunotherapies.
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Value Takes Center Stage Amid Excitement Over New Data At Annual Oncology Meeting In Chicago
5/29/2015
The world’s leading cancer experts gather today in Chicago for the American Society of Clinical Oncology 51st meeting to explore topics in one of healthcare’s most complex and rapidly evolving therapeutic areas.
It’s too early to say if there will be any big surprises this year, but looking over the weekend’s schedule, it is obvious that the conference discussion will largely center around pharmaceutical companies developing and launching novel immunotherapies that are changing the landscape in cancer care. This year’s conference also will highlight the companion topics of precision medicine and predictive diagnostics for finding the right patients for these advanced and costly treatments.