Share

    


In This Section

Home / News & Media / Oncology Newsfeed

Oncology Newsfeed

  • FDA Approves Atezolizumab Plus Cobimetinib/Vemurafenib in BRAF+ Advanced Melanoma

    On July 31, 2020, Roche announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tecentriq® (atezolizumab) plus Cotellic® (cobimetinib) and Zelboraf® (vemurafenib) for the treatment of BRAF V600 mutation-positive advanced melanoma patients.

    Read corporate press release.

    Read FDA announcement.

    Posted 7/31/2020


  • HHS Report Reveals Dramatic Uptick in Telehealth During Pandemic

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) this week released a report showing that traditional Medicare saw a dramatic increase in telehealth usage due to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in larger urban areas. While its use has leveled off, the report finds physicians still expect visits to be held via telehealth post-pandemic.

    The report by the HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (APSE), which looked at telehealth visits from January through June 2020, found that virtual services made up 43.5 percent of Medicare primary care visits in April, a significant jump from February when telehealth accounted for less than 1 percent of visits. Usage dipped by May as in-person visits resumed but continued to remain significant compared to pre-pandemic.

    The report also finds that providers in both rural and urban counties saw increases in telehealth adoption and utilization; however, providers in rural counties saw a smaller growth in telehealth visits as a proportion of all primary care visits in March and April, with a decrease again in May. 

    A recent survey of practitioners suggests continued interest in telehealth among healthcare providers. In the IQVIA survey of about 300 practitioners (oncologists, specialists, and primary care) between April 17 and 22, 2020, only 9 percent of respondents reported that their patient interaction was via telehealth prior to the pandemic; however, during the pandemic period usage increased to 51 percent, and respondents expected it to remain at 21 percent after the pandemic ends. 

     Read the full HHS report here.

    Source: InsideHealthPolicy

    Posted 7/31/2020


  • Upcoming CMS COVID-19 Stakeholder Calls

    The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to host regularly scheduled COVID-19 stakeholder engagement calls. These include office hours calls, weekly site-specific calls for COVID-19 care, and lessons from the front lines. Calls are open to members of the healthcare community and are intended to provide updates, share best practices among peers, and offer attendees an opportunity to ask questions of CMS and other subject matter experts.

    CMS COVID-19 Office Hours Call (Tuesdays at 5:00-6:00 pm ET)
    Tuesday, August 4, 2020
    Toll Free Attendee Dial In: 833-614-0820; Access Code: 3296947
    Audio Webcast Link 

    Tuesday, August 11, 2020
    Toll Free Attendee Dial In: 833-614-0820; Access Code: 3498643
    Audio Webcast Link

    Lessons from the Front Lines: COVID-19 (twice a month on Fridays at 12:30 - 2:00 pm ET)
    Friday, August 7, 2020
    Toll Free Attendee Dial In: 833-614-0820; Access Code: 4695240
    Audio Webcast Link

    See the CMS Coronavirus (COVID-19) Partner Toolkit for a full list of sessions and times. Audio webcast links and dial-in information is also available on this page. All previous session recordings and transcripts are posted to the CMS podcast page.

    Posted 7/29/2020



  • CMS Releases Updated Data on COVID-19's Impact on Medicare Population

    On July 28, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its first monthly update of data that provides a snapshot of the impact of COVID-19 on the Medicare population. 

    The updated data on COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations of Medicare beneficiaries covers the period from January 1 to June 20, 2020. It is based on Medicare claims and encounter data CMS received by July 17, 2020.

    For the first time, the snapshot includes data for American Indian/Alaskan Native Medicare beneficiaries. The new data indicate that American Indian/Alaskan Native beneficiaries have the second highest rate of hospitalization for COVID-19 among racial/ethnic groups after Blacks.

    The updated data confirm that the COVID-19 public health emergency is disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations, particularly racial and ethnic minorities. This is due, in part, to the higher rates of chronic health conditions in these populations and issues related to the social determinants of health.

    Other key data points:

    • Black beneficiaries continue to be hospitalized at higher rates than other racial and ethnic groups, with 670 hospitalizations per 100,000 beneficiaries.
    • Beneficiaries eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid – who often suffer from multiple chronic conditions and have low incomes – were hospitalized at a rate more than 5 times higher than beneficiaries with Medicare only (719 versus 153 per 100,000).
    • CMS paid $2.8 billion in Medicare fee-for-service claims for COVID-related hospitalizations, or an average of $25,255 per beneficiary.

    Access CMS' Medicare COVID-19 Data Snapshot and additional information here. 

    Posted 7/29/2020




  • FDA Approves CAR-T Cell Therapy Brexucabtagene Autoleucel for R/R MCL

    On July 24, 2020, Kite, a Gilead Company, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted accelerated approval to Tecartus™ (brexucabtagene autoleucel, formerly KTE-X19), the first and only approved chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).

    Read FDA announcement.

    Read corporate press release.

    Posted 7/24/2020


  • ASCO & ACCC Join in Effort to Increase Diversity in Cancer Clinical Trials

    The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) announced on July 21 a new collaboration to foster participation in cancer treatment trials to more fully reflect the diversity of people at risk for or living with cancer. Read announcement.

    The joint ASCO-ACCC initiative is designed to identify and implement novel strategies and practical solutions to increase clinical trial participation of racial and ethnic minority populations that continue to be under-represented in cancer research when compared with their percentages in the overall population of patients with cancer. 

    ASCO-ACCC Request for Ideas (RFI)

    The ASCO-ACCC Request for Ideas (RFI) seeks novel strategies and practical solutions to increase participation of under-represented racial and ethnic populations in cancer treatment trials. The ASCO-ACCC Steering Group will review and select ideas that may be modified, combined, implemented, and evaluated by ASCO and ACCC. The ideas submitted may be implemented and evaluated through the ASCO Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPURTM) Study, for example.

    Criteria used to review and prioritize proposed ideas will include the potential to address racial and ethnic disparities in cancer treatment trials, replicability of the strategy, and indications that the submitter has demonstrated a commitment to equitable cancer care, among others. Individuals who submit ideas will be given an opportunity to work on the idea implementation, if interested.

    The RFI is open for participation now through August 24, 2020. Learn more.

    Posted 7/24/2020



  • HHS Secretary Azar Extends Public Health Emergency

    On Thursday, July 23, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar signed an extension of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) designation for another 90 days. The PHE would have expired on July 25.

    Read Secretary Azar's tweet.

    Posted 7/24/2020



  • HHS Partners with ECHO Institute for Virtual Telemedicine Learning Community

    To support wide adoption of telemedicine, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response is partnering with the ECHO Institute at the University of New Mexico and the Public Health Foundation’s TRAIN Learning Network to deliver a 10-week, virtual peer-to-peer learning community for ambulatory providers called Telemedicine Hack.

    What: HHS Telemedicine Hack is a 10-week virtual, peer-to-peer learning community to accelerate telemedicine implementation for ambulatory providers. Components include: five teleECHO sessions; five virtual “office hour” discussion panels; and inter-session peer-to-peer learning facilitated via virtual discussion boards. CME/CEU credits are available at no cost to participants. 

    When: Telemedicine Hack sessions will take place on Wednesdays, from July 22–September 23, 2020, Noon–1 PM ET

    How to sign up: Click here to register.

    See the HHS Telemedicine Hack Flyer for more information.

    Posted 7/21/20



  • USPSTF Draft Recommendation Expands Those Eligible for LDCT Lung Cancer Screening

    The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released a draft recommendation on July 7 that could nearly double the population of those eligible for annual lung cancer screening with low-dose CT. The proposed changes revise the USPSTF high-risk category to include:

    • adults ages 50 to 80 years

    • who have a 20 pack-year smoking history, and

    • currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years.
    The Task Force issued the recommendation with a "B" grade.

    When finalized, this recommendation will replace the 2014 USPSTF recommendation on annual screening for lung cancer with LDCT in adults ages 55 to 80 years who have a 30 pack-year smoking history and currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years.

    The updated recommendation is open for public comment until 8:00 PM on August 3, 2020.

    The USPSTF is an independent, non-federal, volunteer group of national experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine. The Task Force works to improve the health of all Americans by making evidence-based recommendations about clinical preventive services, such as screenings, counseling services, and preventive medicines. The recommendations apply to people with no signs or symptoms of the disease being discussed.

    Posted 7/7/2020


  • FDA Approves Decitabine + Cedazuridine Oral Combo for Adult MDS

    On July 7, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved an oral combination of decitabine and cedazuridine (Inqovi, Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) for adult patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) including the following:

    • previously treated and untreated, de novo and secondary MDS with the following French-American-British subtypes (refractory anemia, refractory anemia with ringed sideroblasts, refractory anemia with excess blasts, and chronic myelomonocytic leukemia [CMML]) and
    • intermediate-1, intermediate-2, and high-risk International Prognostic Scoring System groups.
    Read the FDA announcement.

    Posted 7/7/2020