Latest Conference Articles

The results from a cohort of patients with rare sarcomas in the phase 2 study, presented by professor Jean-Yves Blay, MD, investigated the efficacy and safety of single agent pembrolizumab in rare cancers.

A new study showed that nivolumab was effective in patients with pathogenic exonuclease domain POLE mutated mismatch repair.

The effects of pralsentinib were especially pronounced in treatment-naïve patients with medullary thyroid cancer.

The predictive value provided by T effector and angiogenesis signatures were found to be augmented by Kidney Immune Classification of tumor microenvironments.

Although immune checkpoint inhibitors are not yet approved for first-line therapy in these populations, the new research could lead to a new standard of care.

Adding atezolizumab (Tecentriq) to bevacizumab (Avastin) and chemotherapy failed to significantly improve progression-free survival in patients with newly diagnosed stage III/IV ovarian cancer.

The COVID-19 pandemic will be felt in the oncology space long after the pandemic is over, study shows.

The CheckMate 9ER trial took 2 drugs used as monotherapies in the second line of therapy, nivolumab and cabozantinib, and combined them for use as a first-line treatment against standard of care, sunitinib.

More targeted therapies often have better toxicity profiles, allowing patients to remain adherent for longer.

Trial shows that olaparib, a poly ADP ribose polymerase inhibitor that is the first cancer drug to target an inherited genetic fault, can be used successfully to treat prostate cancers with a weakness in the ability to repair damaged DNA.

Adding abemaciclib to hormonal therapy reduces the risk of cancer recurrence by 25% in patients with high-risk early hormone receptor-positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancer.

Recent studies have analyzed how individuals with autoimmune conditions prescribed specialty medications may be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Digital health tools were a major theme during the first-ever NASP Challenge, comprising 4 of the 5 finalists.

There were a number of FDA approvals in 2019 that were either the first new therapies or first in class approved for certain conditions, and the specialty pipeline is continuing to grow at a rapid pace.

Technology can help revolutionize how a pharmacy manages patients, collects payments, communicates, and can improve overall efficiency.

Clinical education, strong data analytics, and valuing collaboration are the best ways to provide patient support and access to specialty pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Protections for covered entities under the 340B program will most likely be affected by decisions in the Senate.

The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to specialty pharmacy outpacing traditional pharmacy in non-discounted spending.

Data standardization has been an ongoing problem in the specialty pharmacy field, affecting both patients and providers when approaching treatments.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many families and individuals have not been able to pay their out-of-pocket costs or do not have enough money saved to pay their deductibles.

Political insiders Donna L. Brazile and Michael Steele spoke to NASP members about which issues may concern them most and getting involved in the political process.

Although working from home created challenges for contacting stakeholders, some companies saw higher accuracy and fewer sick days among employees.

A discussion at NASP 2020 looked at how pharmacy graduates can get a start in the specialty pharmacy field.

When treating these diseases, immunoglobulin is effective because of its ability to be used by the immune system to neutralize pathogens, such as pathogenic bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

Having a certified specialty pharmacist (CSP) credential can help applicants get hired and be more impactful in the specialty pharmacy arena.

It makes the most sense to get more technicians involved when pharmacies are continuing to grow, since the number of roles that are needed to operate are well suited for technicians, said Jonathan Ogurchak, PharmD, CSP.

National Association of Specialty Pharmacy gives out annual awards during virtual conference.

Because regular SMS messaging is not fully HIPAA-compliant, one solution may be to initiate contact via a text that links to an online platform.