The Oncologist: Peer-Reviewed Supplement: Assessing and Improving Value in Cancer Care Oncology in the Trenches

Table of Contents

How Should We Define Value in Cancer Care? Listen to the Audio Podcast

Scott Ramsey, M.D., Ph.D., Adam Schickedanz,

Beyond Costs and Benefits: Understanding How Patients Make Health Care Decisions
Peter A. Ubel, M.D.

Therapy for Advanced Stage Cancer: What Do Patients Want and Expect? A Patient Advocate's Perspective
Robert L. Erwin, M.S.

The Role of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Review Process: Clinical Trial Endpoints in Oncology
Amy E. McKee, M.D.

What Constitutes Reasonable Evidence of Efficacy and Effectiveness to Guide Oncology Treatment Decisions?
Daniel Sargent, Ph.D.

Drug Pricing and Value in Oncology
Patricia M. Danzon, Ph.D ., Erin Taylor

The Responsibility to Pay for Cancer Treatments: A Health Insurer's View of Value
Lee N. Newcomer, M.D.

Ethical and Value Issues in Insurance Coverage for Cancer Treatment
Dan W. Brock, Ph.D.

Ethical Issues in Patient–Physician Communication About Therapy for Cancer: Professional Responsibilities of the Oncologist
Neil S. Wenger, Paul M. Vespa

Rewarding Value Creation to Promote Innovation in Oncology: The Importance of Considering the Global Product Life Cycle
Louis P. Garrison, Jr., Ph.D.

Uncertainty in Assessing Value of Oncology Treatments
C. Daniel Mullins, Russ Montgomery, Sean Tunis, M.D.

Concrete Options and Ideas for Increasing Value in Oncology Care: The View from One Trench
Thomas J. Smith, M.D, Bruce E. Hillner

Of Value: A Discussion of Cost, Communication, and Evidence to Improve Cancer Care
Adam Schickedanz

Audio Podcasts/full free access paper - The Oncologist Community - How Should We Define Value in Cancer Care?

http://theoncologistcommunity.com/multi-media/audio-podcasts.html


(audio) How Should We Define Value in Cancer Care?

Description: This paper aims to construct a definition of value in cancer care and to argue for the application of that definition in our evaluation of care for cancer

(text - full free access):
  http://theoncologist.alphamedpress.org/cgi/content/full/15/suppl_1/1

Patient Advisory Committee: ECCO PAC/eurocancercoms Roundtable -

"A roundtable of ECCO's patient advisory committee was convened at this year's ESMO conference in Milan to discuss the impact and utilisation of new media to provide cancer information to patients and their families."

Avastin - ESMO: Blocking Angiogenesis Slows Ovarian Cancer - in Meeting Coverage, ESMO from MedPage Today

free full access: Hypersensitivity Reactions Associated with Platinum Antineoplastic Agents: A Systematic Review

abstract: Clinical features of 215 stage I ovarian tumors in Japanese women (borderline vs stage 1 clear cell; stage1C)

PURPOSE: Differences of the clinical features of Stage I borderline ovarian tumors and Stage I ovarian cancer need to be clarified.
METHODS: We retrospectively investigated 215 patients with Stage I ovarian tumors (67 with borderline tumors and 148 with ovarian cancer) treated between 1988 and 2001.
RESULTS: Only one patient with a borderline tumor developed recurrence, while recurrence was found in 20 patients with Stage I ovarian cancer. There was a significant difference in the recurrence rate between patients with Stage Ia or Ib ovarian cancer and those with Stage Ic cancer (p = 0.007). Clear cell adenocarcinoma showed a higher recurrence rate. Among our patients with recurrence, only five in whom the recurrent tumor could be surgically resected are currently alive and disease-free.
CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the low aggressiveness of Stage I borderline ovarian tumors and high aggressiveness of Stage Ic ovarian cancer or clear cell adenocarcinoma. In patients with recurrence, surgical resection may improve survival.

PMID: 20882880 [PubMed - in process]

abstract: Recall of intensive care unit stay in patients managed with a sedation protocol or a sedation protocol with daily sedative interruption

CONCLUSION: A notable percentage of patients discharged from the ICU report moderate to extreme pain, anxiety, and fear, and inability to sleep during their ICU stay; and 29% to 48% have no recall of specific ICU events.

Avoiding Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone Secretion in Dying Patients

Note: good article discussing sensitive issues especially important for understanding by patients/families

"Palliative care physicians know that they should not overhydrate terminally ill patients, but many do not understand why. We have provided the physiologic reasons."

recruiting: Clinical Outcomes in Hereditary Cancer - Full Text View - ClinicalTrials.gov BRCA/pancreatic/breast

Purpose

Compare the clinical characteristics and post-surgical outcomes (overall survival)of pancreatic cancer patients of Ashkenazi descent with or without germline founder mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 .

Compare the clinical characteristics and outcomes (time to progression) of breast cancer patients of Ashkenazi descent with or without germline founder mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 receiving paclitaxel chemotherapy for metastatic disease.

Prize for journalist who tackled taboo subject of rationing cancer therapies Cancer World

short video: commentary Dr Maurie Markman - Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Advanced Ovarian Cancer

8th Symposium on Advanced Ovarian Cancer 2011 (Spain) - GEICO - ESMO - European Society for Medical Oncology

It is a great honor and privilege for us to present you this 8th International Symposium on Advanced Ovarian Cancer: Optimal Therapy. Update, organized since 2009 in partnership between the Spanish Ovarian Cancer Research Group (GEICO) and the European Society for Medical Oncology.

This comprehensive multidisciplinary symposium covers all of the hot and innovative topics surrounding the diagnosis, biology, and therapy of ovarian cancer. In fact our meeting has grown to be recognized internationally as a classical educational event, offering a platform for many of you to gather, to teach, to learn, and also to discuss both the value and the methodology of how standard, as well as new approaches are being incorporated into the management of ovarian cancer.

More than 350 participants from all over the world attended the last edition of the meeting in 2009. It will be a pleasure to welcome all of you on 4th March 2011 in Valencia. Please reserve the date today!

On behalf of the Organizing Committee,

Andrés Poveda & Jan B Vermorken
Symposium Directors

For further information, please visit: www.doctaforum.com/aocsymp

Patient Seminar 2010 - ESMO - European Society for Medical Oncology Oct 9th/10th

8th ESMO Patient Seminar

ESMO is pleased to announce that the 8th Patient Seminar will be held during the 35th ESMO Congress, Milan 2010.

The 8th ESMO Patient Seminar will be held at the Congress venue of the 35th ESMO Congress, the Fiera Milano Congressi, Milan, Italy.

The Seminar, dedicated to cancer patients, family members, representatives of cancer leagues and patient groups, will open on Saturday afternoon, 9 October, with welcome speeches and keynote lectures, followed by a full day of sessions on Sunday, 10 October 2010. The Seminar will cover a wide range of subjects, with the aim of encouraging direct interaction and communication between oncology patients and healthcare professionals.

The lectures will be given in English and Italian.