Tony Hagen

Articles

$1.5 Trillion Tax Plan Heads to White House for Signature

December 21st 2017

The consolidated tax bill that now goes to President Trump’s desk for a signature carries with it dire warnings from oncology interest groups that access to care will suffer under the federal spending cutbacks that are expected to result.

No Difference in Overall Survival with Shorter Extended AI Therapy

December 7th 2017

Investigators with the Austria Breast and Colorectal Cancer Study Group announced today that years can safely be shaved off anastrozole (Arimidex) treatment without affecting disease-free survival postmenopausal HR-positive breast cancer.

Trastuzumab Disappoints in HER2-low Patient Cohort

December 6th 2017

A trial to determine the value of trastuzumab plus standard adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with low levels of HER2 protein has shown no significant efficacy, confounding investigators who launched the trial based on opposing results from 2 earlier studies.

Tax Cut Proposal Seen as Endangering Access to Care

November 17th 2017

Oncology providers contend that the sweeping $1.5 trillion in tax cuts sought by Republicans would trigger sequester cuts that would drive more independent practices out of business and reduce patient access to care.

Cota Signs Deal With MSK to Improve Patient Data Access

November 12th 2017

A lot of information goes into the electronic health record, but doctors complain that it's not that easy to get useful information out of it.

PARPs Bring Excitement to Ovarian Treatment

November 10th 2017

PARP inhibitors offer exciting opportunities to improve outcomes for patients with ovarian cancer and hopefully will be moved to the front-line setting if the evidence warrants it, said Susana M. Campos, MD.

Better Outcomes in High-Risk Multiple Myeloma

November 9th 2017

Because genetic abnormalities play a role in multiple myeloma, it is important to understand these better to improve outcomes, particularly for high-risk patients, said Shaji K. Kumar, MD.

CMS Reins in Spending Under 340B, Garnering Praise, Criticism

November 2nd 2017

A newly announced CMS policy to redistribute savings under the 340B Drug Discount Program so that Medicare beneficiaries save money on copayments has garnered a mixture of praise and criticism from supporters and critics of the program.

Ado-Trastuzumab Emtansine Shows Activity in HER2-Mutated, Amplified Lung Cancer

October 19th 2017

Ado-trastuzumab emtansine (Kadcyla) is active and well tolerated in patients with advanced HER2-mutant or amplified lung cancers as identified by next generation sequencing.

Ensartinib Effective, Well-Tolerated in Patients With ALK+, TKI-Naive NSCLC

October 18th 2017

The potent small molecule TKI ensartinib has shown promise and meaningful intercranial activity in ALK-positive, TKI-naïve patients with non–small cell lung cancer.

Durvalumab Delivers on QoL Post Chemo RT in PACIFIC Trial

October 18th 2017

Patient reported outcomes from the PACIFIC trial of durvalumab versus placebo after chemoradiation in locally advanced unresectable NSCLC show that durvalumab had no serious impact on quality of life.

Dacomitinib Stands Out in EGFR-Mutated Subtype Response

October 17th 2017

Second-generation EGFR inhibitor dacomitinib showed clear superiority over first-generation TKI gefitinib (Iressa) in a comparison of performance in EGFR mutation subtypes exon 19 deletion and L858R in advanced NSCLC.

FISHing for a Better Assay in ALK-Positive Lung Cancer

October 16th 2017

In addition to proving the superiority of alectinib versus crizotinib, the phase III ALEX trial provided clear guidance on which of 2 assays evaluated could provide stronger guidance on which patients would respond to ALK-specific therapy.

IASLC Conference Will Highlight PACIFIC Trial QoL Data on Durvalumab

October 14th 2017

Fred R. Hirsch, MD, PhD, provides highlights of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer, leading with his excitement for updated quality-of-life data from the PACIFIC trial of patients with locally advanced, unresectable stage III non–small cell lung cancer.

Penn Seeks to Make CAR T-Cell Therapy Work in Solid Tumor Disease

September 30th 2017

Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy for hematological malignancies took a huge step forward this summer with the FDA approval of Novartis

Novartis Sets a Price of $475,000 for CAR T-Cell Therapy

August 31st 2017

Novartis’ just-approved chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy tisagenlecleucel is going to be introduced on the market at a price of $475,000 for a single infusion, an amount that is within the range anticipated by oncologists.

Palliative Care Consultations Significantly Reduce Healthcare Utilization

August 29th 2017

End-of-life palliative care consultations can significantly reduce healthcare utilization, according to a broad-based population study published in the Journal of Oncology Practice.

Artificial Intelligence Is Still a Long Way From Understanding the Subtlety of a Texas Metaphor

August 27th 2017

It is not far-fetched to believe that, one day soon, automated systems will be able to obtain payer approval for therapies without any human involvement.

Speculation Mounts About Price Tag for Emerging CAR Therapies

August 17th 2017

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies could spawn a new and lucrative industry in anticancer immunotherapy, resulting in single-infusion treatments costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, and even attracting medical tourism from abroad, where regulatory permissions are likely to come more slowly than in the United States.

ACCC Seeks to Build a Better Lung Cancer Model

August 11th 2017

The Association of Community Cancer Centers has long recognized the principle of mass-producing success based on an individual cancer center's achievement.