Oncology

Pharmacists can educate patients about a pair of new treatment options for multiple myeloma approved by the FDA in March 2021.

These financial challenges can include difficulty paying medical bills or the inability to pay them at all, high financial distress, cost-related medication non-adherence, food insecurity, and delayed or foregone care due to cost.

Earlier this year, the FDA granted accelerated approval to tepotinib (Tepmetko, EMD Serono Inc) for the treatment of adults with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who are harboring MET exon 14 skipping alterations.

Prior to this research, it was known that genetically removing the POLQ protein killed cells with BRCA gene defects, but no drug had been identified that prevented POLQ from functioning.

Positive topline results have been published from a phase 3 trial assessing the CD-19 directed CAR T cell therapy lisocabtagene maraleucel as a second-line treatment in adults with relapsed or refractory LBCL.

Researchers found that men with a family history of prostate cancer reached the screening risk threshold up to 12 years earlier than the general population.

Phase 2 clinical trial results assessing sotorasib in previously treated patients with NSCLC showed that the drug presented a median OS of 12.5 months among 124 patients.

The findings led to the FDA accepting the supplemental Biologics License Application and Priority Review designation for treatment, according to a Gilead press release.

A patient with multiple providers and health problems seeks a pharmacist’s knowledge for managing her prescribed and OTC drug products.

Avapritinib is approved for adult patients with advanced systemic mastocytosis, including individuals with aggressive systemic mastocytosis, systemic mastocytosis with an associated hematological neoplasm, and mast cell leukemia.

Updated research offers an additional 2 years of follow-up data and statistics on treatment with a combination of ibrutinib and venetoclax in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Common factors that contributed to increased dissatisfaction at work included workflow disruptions, role conflict, quantity of work, organizational culture, and leadership support.

The addition of daratumumab to lenalidomide and dexamethasone resulted in a significant benefit to overall survival in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma who were ineligible for autologous stem cell transplant and were treated to progression, according to the results of the phase 3 MAIA study.

In the United States, endometrial cancer is the most common cancer of female reproductive organs.

The study examining venetoclax and obinutuzumab is in progress and currently recruiting patients who are newly diagnosed with asymptomatic, high-risk CLL.

Dealing with a cancer diagnosis is difficult, but patients with MM have reason to be hopeful. Survival rates are on the rise, and a robust pipeline of promising immunotherapies and novel treatment options are in development.

Pharmacists have always been a vital member of the cancer care team, but the emergence of many new oral therapies is making their role in patient care a more prominent one.

The researchers analyzed patients with lung cancer before they underwent surgery and calculated their excess body weight using visceral fat index measured by CT scans.

Study results demonstrated consistent benefit across higher and lower-risk patients.

Because study coordinators were unable to travel, research pharmacist Brian Wortz, PharmD, said researchers were forced to adapt quickly and figure out what they could do remotely.

As the drug experts, Brian Wortz, PharmD, said pharmacists may be able to recognize adverse effects before other health care professionals, ensuring patient safety and optimizing their care.

Oncologist Susan Miesfeldt, MD, of MaineHealth, discussed the importance of genetic testing and counseling for breast and ovarian cancers as well as barriers that must be addressed in order to reach more patients eligible for these services.

Clinical trial participants often have even more questions than patients receiving standard-of-care treatments, so working within the team to answer their questions and provide optimal care is essential for research pharmacists.

After identifying 3 novel checkpoints involved in immunosuppression and autoimmune diseases, investigators developed recombinant proteins that could be used in this patient population.

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Concerns surrounding the vaccination of this population stemmed from the effects that cancer and its treatments can have on the immune system, but the investigators said this study should alleviate those fears.

Teclistamab is an off-the-shelf, T-cell redirecting, bispecific antibody targeting both B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) and CD3 receptors.