Here for the Socks: Building the Physician-Patient Relationship in an Unexpected Way
By Jon Steinmetz, DOA few months ago, at the start of my second year as a hematology oncology fellow, I attempted to take stock of the most valuable lessons I had learned in my first year. Among the pathology conferences, difficult family conversations, and many tedious smear reviews, one series of patient interactions struck...
Cancer Immunotherapy Drugs Driving End-of-Life Cost Increases
Immunotherapy drugs accounted for 84% of the overall increase in Medicare Part B spending for end-of-life outpatient cancer care. Medscape Medical News
Ultralow Dose of Nivolumab Offers Huge Cost Savings
A clinical trial from India raises the possibility of huge cost savings by using ultralow immunotherapy doses in the treatment of head and neck cancer. Medscape Medical News
New Standard of Care for Early dMMR/MSI-H Colorectal Cancer?
Another study shows good results with neoadjuvant immunotherapy in patients with locally advanced dMMR/MSI-H colorectal cancer, leading the authors to suggest it as a new standard of care. Medscape Medical News
Rapid Uptake of Immunotherapy, but Slower in Rural Practices
Overall, immunotherapy was adopted pretty rapidly after it was approved for the treatment of several cancers, but smaller and rural oncologic practices were slower on the uptake. Medscape Medical News
Nivolumab or Pembrolizumab Combos in Advanced Kidney Cancer?
Immunotherapy combinations based on nivolumab entail lower costs for grade 3/4 adverse events than those using pembrolizumab, a finding that could inform treatment decisions. Medscape Medical News
Atezolizumab Fails to Improve Outcomes in Postsurgery Kidney Cancer
"Our results add to an emerging body of literature around the role of adjuvant immunotherapy for renal cell carcinoma. With the longest duration of follow-up to date to our knowledge." MDedge News
New Vaccine Approach Halts Disease After 23 Yrs of Breast Cancer
A combination of immune stimulants and immunotherapy that transforms tumors into cancer vaccine-producing factories has shown remarkable promise in a phase 1/2 trial, although only in 30% of patients. Medscape Medical News
Many Patients at End of Life Still Receiving Cancer Therapy
The use of systemic cancer care at end of life has essentially remained unchanged over the past few years, but the type of therapy has shifted from chemotherapy to immunotherapy. Medscape Medical News
Could Nivolumab Prevent Oral Cancer in High-Risk Patients?
Giving the immunotherapy nivolumab to patients with oral proliferative leukoplakia not only reduces lesions but also may prevent cancer progression, suggests the first study in the preventive setting. Medscape Medical News
