Ipsen Coffey (roomtoe4)

The virtual tumor board (VTB) is a multidisciplinary group of specialist physicians who remotely educate the treating physician on the development of an evidence-based cancer treatment plan that will enhance patient outcomes according to the available literature. The use of hypofractionated (HF) radiation therapy (RT) is a preferred approach according to National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines and is encouraged by the VTB, when appropriate. An observational, cohort study using prior authorization and claims data were conducted to show how the relative use of HF and conventional fractionated (CF) RT changed after the implementation of the VTB. Orders and claims for qualifying patients from 1 year before launch (August 2016) to 1 year after launch (August 2018) of the VTB were extracted. Claims were examined to observe which patients received CF (28-35 fractions) versus HF (15-21 fractions) RT. χ tests were used to assess the association between time period and the ordering and use of HF RT. Logistic regressions were used to test the association, after adjusting for the patient's age, urbanicity, local average income, and the RT modality used. After implementation, we observed a significantly higher percentage of orders for HF RT (60.3% [n = 1,254 of 2,079] 53.2% [n = 1,010 of 1,899]; < .001) and claims for HF RT (71.5% [n = 1,143 of 1,598] 59.0% [n = 941 of 1,595]; < .001). Relative to before implementation, the adjusted odds of an order for HF RT was 1.35 (CI, 1.19 to 1.54), and the adjusted odds of a claim for HF RT was 1.76 (CI, 1.52 to 2.04). After the VTB was implemented, there was a significant increase in HF RT orders and claims. After the VTB was implemented, there was a significant increase in HF RT orders and claims. The COVID-19 pandemic is an international public health crisis. The risk of getting an infection with COVID-19 might impact the emotional well-being in patients with cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate quality of life (QoL) for patients with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional survey, including questions about demographics, concerns of COVID-19 impact on cancer treatment and outpatient clinic visits, and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-C30 questionnaire was sent to patients with cancer at the Department of Oncology, Odense University Hospital, Denmark. The survey was open from 15 May to 29 May 2020, and 4.571 responded. Results were compared to the Danish 'Barometer Study' conducted by the Danish Cancer Society to elucidate experiences with the Danish healthcare system prior to COVID-19 pandemic. In total, 9% of patients with cancer had refrained from consulting a doctor or the hospital due to fear of COVID-19 infection, and arometer Study'. However, the study suggests that concerns of contracting COVID-19 was correlated with lower scores of QoL.Kymriah is an innovative cancer therapy which works by removing disease fighting T-cells from patients, genetically modifying or reprogramming the immune cells to attack cancer, and re-infusing them back into the patients. It treats childhood blood and bone marrow cancer. The cost of this new hope-giving gene therapy is CHF 450,000 per treatment. This exorbitantly high price set by Novartis, in exercise of its exclusive rights resulting from patent protection, undermines the real-world impact of this revolutionary therapy. On December 16, 2019, Novartis relinquished its European patent on Kymriah as a result of a successful patent opposition lodged by 'Public Eye' and 'Médicins du Monde'. This case study of Kymriah highlights the potential role of civil society in improving equitable and affordable access to innovative health technologies by using the procedural safeguard of patent opposition. This study finds that patent opposition is an important policy opt