Ryan Haumschild, PharmD, MS, MBA, CPEL

Panelists discuss how treatment access challenges require provider advocacy through peer-to-peer reviews and patient assistance programs, whereas cost-effectiveness evaluation focuses on time to specialist care, therapy duration, and quality-of-life outcomes.

Panelists discuss how biologic therapy selection depends on disease burden rather than just body surface area (BSA), with monitoring requiring objective measures, patient-reported outcomes, and specialized photography documentation for patients with darker skin tones.

Panelists discuss how patients with darker skin tones often experience delayed diagnosis due to misidentification as fungal infections or other conditions, emphasizing the importance of shared decision-making and patient education about the immune-mediated nature of the disease.

Panelists discuss how atopic dermatitis (AD) presents differently across skin tones, appearing as purple, gray, or barely visible inflammation rather than classic redness, with perifollicular prominence and postinflammatory pigmentation changes being more prominent in patients with darker skin.

Panelists discuss how atopic dermatitis (AD) extends far beyond pruritus to include pain, sleep disturbances, psychosocial stigma, and quality-of-life impacts that affect patients’ work, school, and daily functioning regardless of disease severity.

Panelists discuss how health care professionals face educational gaps in understanding atopic dermatitis (AD) immunopathogenesis, with advanced practice providers (APPS) particularly needing additional training outside standard curricula to master biologic therapy selection.

Panelists discuss how atopic dermatitis involves complex inflammatory and neuronal pathways, with IL-4, IL-13, and IL-31 cytokines driving Th2-mediated inflammation that varies across different racial populations.

Panelists discuss how providers and payers must collaborate to develop innovative coverage criteria for BTK inhibitors that prevent patients with subclinical progression from being forced to fail multiple inappropriate therapies before accessing optimal treatment.

Panelists discuss how academic centers can use telehealth programs like Project ECHO to train community neurologists and ensure consistent, evidence-based MS care across diverse geographic regions.

Panelists discuss how economic models must account for the broader impact of MS progression on earning potential, family planning, caregiver burden, and quality of life rather than focusing solely on direct medical costs.

Panelists discuss how patient-reported outcomes are crucial for capturing MS symptoms like fatigue, depression, and cognitive decline that significantly impact working-age patients but require standardization for practical clinical integration.

Panelists discuss how clinical trials and real-world studies should focus on patients with PIRA who haven’t experienced relapses for extended periods but continue to accumulate disability.

Panelists discuss how the evaluation process must evolve to accommodate therapies that show benefits in slowing atrophy and motor decline over 1 to 2 years, emphasizing the need for early coverage rather than waiting for extensive long-term data.

Panelists discuss how disability progression can be measured through practical clinical tools like patient-reported outcomes, timed walking tests, and dexterity assessments rather than relying solely on relapse rates.

Panelists expressed cautious optimism about high-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) treatment, emphasizing the need for ongoing research, personalized therapy based on molecular profiling, and strengthened collaboration between community and academic centers to improve patient outcomes, while recognizing that education and sharing best practices are key to advancing targeted therapies and achieving long-term cures.

Panelists highlight that patient advocacy is crucial in improving high-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) outcomes by providing emotional support, funding research, influencing clinical guidelines, promoting patient engagement, facilitating collaboration between community and academic care, addressing systemic access barriers, and implementing innovative programs like medication recycling to enhance treatment availability.

Panelists discuss how payers can evaluate BTK inhibitors by considering specific MS phenotypes and FDA indications rather than applying traditional step therapy protocols that may delay optimal treatment.

Panelists discuss how BTK inhibitors represent a promising new oral therapy class that could address both inflammatory and neurodegenerative aspects of MS, particularly for progressive forms where treatment options are limited.

Panelists advocate for a streamlined approach to diagnosing KMT2A-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia (AML) that includes standardized testing protocols (cytogenetics, fluorescence in situ hybridization [FISH], and next-generation sequencing) at diagnosis, close collaboration with laboratories to clarify complex reports, adoption of rapid testing methods, and flexible sample collection strategies to ensure timely, accurate identification and optimized patient care.

Panelists discuss how payers seek good return on investment when evaluating expensive gene therapies, creating potential friction when innovative treatments come at significant costs, requiring ongoing dialogue between manufacturers, patients, payers, and physicians to determine appropriate value and access.

Panelists highlight that despite established guidelines, delays and gaps in molecular profiling—especially for KMT2A rearrangements—persist due to report complexity, misinterpretation, and misconceptions about patient eligibility, underscoring the urgent need for improved provider education, expert collaboration, and comprehensive testing to ensure accurate diagnosis, optimal treatment selection, and better patient outcomes in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Panelists discuss how emerging biomarkers like neurofilament light protein, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), cervical cord atrophy, and phase rim lesions could enable earlier identification of patients at risk for progression, supporting more effective treatment decisions and payer coverage determinations based on longitudinal disability data rather than just relapse activity.

Panelists stress that timely and accurate diagnosis of KMT2A-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is essential for personalized treatment planning, highlighting the need to overcome systemic delays in molecular testing, foster academic-community collaboration, and educate both clinicians and patients on the safety and importance of waiting for complete genetic data before initiating therapy.

Panelists discuss how patient perspectives on new therapies center around clinically meaningful outcomes and survival while balancing individual risk tolerance, with some patients willing to accept higher risks for potentially transformative treatments in devastating diseases.

Panelists discuss how exciting ongoing research efforts are expanding similar gene therapy technologies to other muscular dystrophies like FSHD and myotonic dystrophy, using strategies to knock down rather than restore gene expression for these autosomal dominant conditions.

Panelists emphasize that effective use of menin inhibitors for KMT2A-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia (AML) requires dispelling common misconceptions about oral targeted therapy, ensuring close monitoring for adverse effects, clarifying treatment goals—especially the role of transplant—and supporting patients through comprehensive education and multidisciplinary care.

Panelists discuss how current multiple sclerosis (MS) therapies show limited effectiveness against progression, but emerging Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors offer promise by targeting both B cells and central nervous system (CNS)–penetrating microglia, with one showing a 31% reduction in confirmed disability progression in clinical trials.

Panelists highlight that the emergence of menin inhibitors is reshaping the treatment paradigm for KMT2A-rearranged acute myeloid leukemia (AML), with ongoing research focused on optimizing their use, overcoming resistance, expanding access, and integrating these targeted therapies into personalized and potentially curative treatment strategies across diverse patient populations.

Panelists discuss how chronic neuroinflammation involves distinct mechanisms from acute relapses—including microglial activation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and iron deposition—necessitating dual therapeutic approaches that address relapsing and progressive disease components.

Panelists discuss how intrathecal delivery of onasemnogene abeparvovec in the STEER study demonstrates statistically significant motor function improvements in older patients with SMA (ages 2-18 years) with favorable safety profiles, potentially expanding gene therapy access beyond the current age restriction of under 2 years.