May 2015, Vol 6, No 4

One of the most fear-inducing side effects of chemotherapy is nausea and vomiting. Without appropriate antiemetic prophylaxis, 70% to 80% of all patients with cancer who receive chemotherapy experience nausea and/or vomiting. Consequently, preventing and managing chemotherapy­induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is a crucial part of care planning for patients with cancer.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and a German company called SAP are launching the clinical phase of ASCO’s big-data initiative—CancerLinQ. This clinical phase is focused on gathering and analyzing data from the 97% of US patients with cancer who do not participate in clinical trials.

A revised survivorship care plan template addresses obstacles that have limited the use of survivorship plans in clinical practice, suggested an American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) expert panel headed by Deborah K. Mayer, PhD, MSN, RN, Professor of Nursing and Director of Survivorship Care, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

San Diego, CA—According to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV), highly and moderately emetogenic chemotherapy should be managed with a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, an NK1 receptor antagonist, and dexamethasone (Decadron).

San Diego, CA—Approved in 2012 by the FDA, axitinib (Inlyta) is indicated for the treatment of patients with advanced renal-cell carcinoma (RCC) whose disease had failed 1 previous systemic therapy. The approval of axitinib was based on the safety and efficacy data from clinical trials, which are often limited in their patient population and short-term analysis.

San Diego, CA—The healthcare costs of patients with advanced melanoma after ipilimumab (Yervoy) therapy are significant, according to recent study findings presented at the 2015 Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy annual meeting.

The April 14, 2015, repeal of the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula for physician payments under Medicare is being welcomed by the healthcare community, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The 392 to 37 vote to pass H.R. 2, called the Medicare Access and Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2015, came just in time to avoid the 21% cut in Medicare fees that would have come into effect after the most recent SGR patch expired on March 31, 2015.

Washington, DC—The institution of cancer treatment pathways is not incompatible with personalized medicine, but rather it has the potential to offer access to a rapid learning system that can promote personalized therapy, said Michael Kolodziej, MD, National Medical Director, Oncology Solutions, Aetna, at the Fifth Annual Conference of the Association for Value-Based Cancer Care.