Clinical

A study published in the New England Journals of Medicine evaluated the ability of financial incentives in promoting smoking cessation.

A study of more than 195,000 Medicare clients who were in the hospital for observation in 2010 found that only a tiny fraction were discharged to a skilled nursing facility, and fewer still had their care covered by Medicare. The findings have implications in light of the two-midnight rule and other policies that may not affect large numbers of beneficiaries, but can have a sizable impact on those who are affected.

Introduced with good intent, some of the provisions of the Orphan Drug Act may compel the FDA to rethink its strategy.

Medical monitoring and counseling can help us track and contain many harmful effects of cancer drug-induced cardiotoxicity. Patient engagement from the very beginning, along with medically advanced testing methods, can help us surmount cardiotoxicity and better ensure that patients receive only the benefits of essential cancer treatment.

Steve Miller, MD, chief medical officer of Express Scripts, explained indication-specific pricing as an alternate pricing model for high cost specialty medications like oncology drugs.

A patient advocate underscores the need for awareness and self-advocacy among cancer patients by highlighting her own experience as a survivor, who experienced delayed cardiotoxic effects of chemotherapy.

With the prognosis for many cancers improving, we are seeing an appropriate sharpening of focus on the cardiovascular risks of patients who have survived cancer or are being treated for cancer, as well as a growing recognition of the impact this competing morbidity has on both short- and long-term health outcomes.