Christina is the associate editorial director of The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) and The American Journal of Accountable Care® (AJAC), and joined AJMC in 2016. She oversees the publication of the print journals, from manuscript submission to publication, and works with the editors in chief and editorial boards to promote the journals.
She has a BS in public health from Rutgers University. You can connect with Christina on LinkedIn.
Rates of Preventive Mastectomy for Breast Cancer Influenced by Surgeon Attitudes
September 18th 2017In light of rising rates of preventive mastectomies among women with breast cancer, a new study looks at whether patient and surgeon factors, including attitudes toward breast conservation, affect the odds of receiving this surgery.
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Representatives Probe CMS for Further Detail on New CAR-T Therapy Payment Agreement
September 14th 2017After CMS and Novartis devised an outcomes-based payment approach for the new chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T treatment tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah), a group of representatives are requesting more information on the specifics of the agreement.
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FDA Announces Progress, Next Steps in Streamlining Orphan Drug Review Process
September 13th 2017FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, announced the agency’s progress in streamlining the orphan drug review process and outlined plans to close a loophole currently hindering pediatric drug research.
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Bringing Drugs to Market Costs Less Than Previously Thought, Study Finds
September 12th 2017How much does it cost for a drug maker to develop a new drug? Prior estimates have put this figure as high as $2.7 billion, but a new study indicates that the median cost of development for 10 cancer drugs was actually $648 million-a substantial discrepancy.
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ASCO Releases Guidelines on Patient—Clinician Communication
September 12th 2017The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has published a set of guidelines and best practices that can help clinicians improve how they communicate with patients receiving cancer therapy and their families.
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Researchers Develop Pen Tool for Quickly Identifying Cancer Tissue During Surgery
September 8th 2017“Is the pen mightier than the scalpel?” A new study aims to answer that question by presenting research on a handheld pen-sized device that can rapidly determine cancer tissue borders during surgery.
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Tiotropium Shown to Preserve Lung Function When Used in Early COPD
September 7th 2017Trial results published in a recent article indicate that patients using tiotropium in the early stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) had better lung function and a slower decline in function.
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Using Patient-Reported Distress to Guide the Timing of Palliative Care Conversations
September 6th 2017After presenting research on the use of a patient-reported distress survey to guide the timing of palliative care discussions, lead author Stuart Goldberg, MD, chief scientific officer for Cota, Inc, discussed how it represents a shift in the paradigm of end-of-life conversations.
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Study Indicates "Welcome Mat" Effects of Medicaid Expansion on Children's Coverage
September 6th 2017New research suggests that the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act was linked to gains in coverage among children who were already eligible, indicating a "welcome mat" effect.
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ICER Evaluates Cost-Effectiveness of Cognitive Therapies for Chronic Pain
September 2nd 2017A new draft report from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) indicates that cognitive and mind-body therapies may be valuable additions to usual care for chronic back and neck pain, but that more evidence is needed to understand the cost-effectiveness implications for both conditions.
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FDA Emphasizes Risks of Pembrolizumab in Multiple Myeloma After Reviewing Halted Trials
September 1st 2017Less than 2 months after it ordered a stop to 3 trials of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in multiple myeloma due to safety concerns, the FDA has released a more detailed analysis of what went wrong in these trials.
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Association Found Between Walking Test Performance and Patient-Reported Outcomes in COPD
August 31st 2017Among the many exercise tests used to assess patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a 6-minute walking test was most strongly associated with patient-reported outcomes and quality of life.
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Race, Socioeconomic Status Linked to Rehospitalizations Among Patients With Advanced Cancer
August 30th 2017A new study finds that individuals with advanced cancer have high rates of hospitalization in the year after diagnosis. Palliative care aimed at preventing hospital admissions may be a useful tool, especially for the populations most at risk of rehospitalization.
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Texas Hospitals Use Social Networks to Seek Volunteer Nurses for Hurricane Relief Efforts
August 30th 2017Through the power of social media, hospitals in Texas are asking nurses from across the country to lend a hand in assisting the overwhelmed staff who have been working overtime to care for survivors of Hurricane Harvey.
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Texas, Coping With Public Health Emergency After Hurricane Harvey, Asks Payers for Flexibility
August 28th 2017The state of Texas remains in a public health emergency after the landfall of Hurricane Harvey as first responders rush to meet emergency medical needs and officials urge insurers to loosen restrictions on care delivery.
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Gilead Sciences Announces $11.9 Billion Purchase of CAR-T Developer Kite Pharma
August 28th 2017Gilead Sciences will acquire Kite Pharma by the end of 2017 in an $11.9 billion transaction that will place Gilead at the forefront of chimeric antigen receptor-T (CAR-T) cell therapy development.
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