Oncology

Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included the FDA commissioner discussing boosting drug competition; BMS offering details on its acquisition of Celgene; and cancer mortality rates declining for the 25th consecutive year.

Less than two-thirds of women aged 30 to 65 years were up to date with cervical cancer screenings in 2016. The percentage was even lower for women aged 21 to 29, with just over half up to date on screenings.

For the 25th consecutive year, the cancer mortality rate in the United States has declined, according to The American Cancer Society’s annual report on cancer rates and trends. The overall 27% drop in mortality rate translates into 2.6 million fewer deaths from cancer between the years 1991 and 2016.

New York City is expanding health coverage to 600,000 uninsured residents; a transparency rule requiring hospitals to post prices online is confusing patients; and Eli Lilly has purchased Loxo Oncology in what some are calling a massive bet on cancer genetic.

Bristol-Meyers Squibb (BMS) and Celgene kicked off the 37th Annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference by discussing their leading drugs, near-term launches, and early pipeline assets.

As a physician, Brian Koffman, MDCM, DCFP, DABFM, MS Ed, medical director, CLL Society, was able to leverage his medical and scientific knowledge during treatment for his chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and he encourages other patients to educate themselves on their illnesses in order to receive the best care.

Results from the first 2 performance periods of the Oncology Care Model (OCM) highlighted areas where Northwest Medical Specialties was doing well and areas it could improve, said Sibel Blau, MD, medical oncologist at Northwest Medical Specialties, PLLC.

Patients who are treated with chemotherapy for their solid tumors have an increased risk of therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia (tMDS/AML) despite advances in chemotherapy regimens, according to a new study in JAMA Oncology.

Males with myeloproliferative neoplasms have worse survival compared with females with MPN, even when adjusted for age at presentation, presenting phenotype, and molecular characteristics.

From chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy to value-based contracting, reimbursement issues dominated reader interest.

There can be great disparities across the country and across races when it comes to cancer care, but clinical pathways can help standardize care so everyone gets the most efficacious treatments, said Robert Daly, MD, MBA, medical oncologist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

The practices that have been participating in CMS’ Oncology Care Model have undergone significant practice transformation in order to be successful in the program. However, even after being in the model for 2 years, there are still remaining opportunities for investment.

Throughout the year, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) offered a number of video programs, including Peer Exchange discussions and interviews, on a range of topics. Here are the most-watched videos published by AJMC® in 2018.

Keeping people with cancer out of the hospital is a low-hanging fruit that is of huge benefit to patients, explained Barbara L. McAneny, MD, president of the American Medical Association.

The Oncology Care Model (OCM) is not a sustainable model, but while it finishes out the 5-year pilot, CMS will likely be fine-tuning bundled payments in medical oncology, said Michael Kolodziej, MD, vice president and chief innovation officer at ADVI Health, Inc.

A joint assessment comparing the results of value frameworks created by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) found that the frameworks produce comparable measures of the clinical benefits of new cancer therapies in roughly two-thirds of more than 100 drug comparisons examined.