What Caught Our Eye: NCI Chief Sharpless Interviewed; Expert Patients; “Why We Didn’t Seek Right to Try”; Progress in Survivorship Care; and More

“Bait And Switch: The Sneaky Way Your Employer Just Passed Healthcare Costs Onto You”

More Americans are now on high out-of-pocket health insurance plans through their employers. The premiums may be cheaper, but these plans are not always great bargains for workers. @forbeshealth https://t.co/3aJYPHOXVy pic.twitter.com/mX1TeM23Ul

— Peter Ubel (@peterubel) March 2, 2018

By Peter Ubel, Forbes.com — With increasing frequency, employers are directing their workers to the kind of high deductible, high out-of-pocket insurance plans that leave workers financially responsible for a surprising portion of their healthcare expenses.
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“Congress Races The Clock In Quest To Bring Stability To Individual Insurance Market”

tick tick tick. Congress's window for stabilizing individual insurance markets is closing fast. my latest:https://t.co/Hsja5rRu7V

— julie rovner (@jrovner) March 2, 2018

By Julie Rovner, Kaiser Health News — Congress is running out of time if members want to come up with legislation to stabilize the individual insurance market. While Republicans and Democrats still feud over the fate of the Affordable Care Act, a bipartisan group of senators and House members has been working since last summer on measures to keep prices from rising out of control and undermining the individual market where people who don’t get insurance through work or the government buy policies.
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“His six-month “listening tour” almost over, Sharpless discusses his vision for NCI”

His six-month “listening tour” almost over, Sharpless discusses his vision for NCI (https://t.co/JfGyWlwTlw) pic.twitter.com/XeIV6nltVd

— The Cancer Letter (@TheCancerLetter) February 26, 2018

By Paul Goldberg, The Cancer Letter — “The notion that cancer’s not one disease, but thousands of diseases is really starting to sink in, and the implications of that fact are being felt throughout [NCI], and it means we have to change how we do everything. I hope that the early days of the Sharpless administration will be remembered as a time when we really bought into that reality and did some things differently,” NCI Director Norman “Ned” Sharpless said in a conversation with The Cancer Letter.
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“I have brain cancer. Drug companies and med schools should be compensating me for my expertise”

I’ve learned that my knowledge is extremely valuable. I’ve also learned that it is undervalued.https://t.co/FAnLNzbA0G pic.twitter.com/H0TfgMBtcm

— STAT (@statnews) February 27, 2018

By Adam Hayden, STAT News — Expert patients offer value when it comes to medical education or the development of medical devices and drugs. It’s time for them to get the compensation they deserve for improving the health care experience for everyone.
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“A 25-Year Experience of US Food and Drug Administration Accelerated Approval of Malignant Hematology and Oncology Drugs and Biologics”

Nice FDA study of all 93 heme-onc indications approved via accelerated pathway as of 5/17; 55% fulfilled PMRs, verifying benefit 3.5 yrs (on avg) after approval, but 40% yet to complete confirmatory trial(s) or verified benefit, 5% withdrawn from market https://t.co/7dDHzVcQN4

— Joseph Ross (@jsross119) March 2, 2018

Scientific Review Published in JAMA Oncology — Accelerated approval (AA) is a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expedited program intended to speed the approval of drugs and biologics that may demonstrate a meaningful advantage over available therapies for diseases that are serious or life-threatening.
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“My Mom Just Died From Cancer. Here’s Why We Didn’t Seek #RightToTry”

My Mom had 30 years of good living due to drugs developed in the 70s War on Cancer. But when her silent breast cancer reappeared in her bones in 2014, she kept the faith, staying with treatments that had passed the muster of clinical trials. https://t.co/n0GNlAM9IM #RightToTry

— David Kroll (@davidkroll) March 1, 2018

By Dave Kroll, Forbes.com — Few events are more jarring to the human experience than being diagnosed with an acutely life-threatening illness. Perhaps as devastating – or even worse – is when that person is a loved one, especially a child or a young life-partner.

And if you’re a young person, having a parent or close relative diagnosed with a terminal illness may be the most emotionally devastating experience you’ve faced to date.
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“Patricia A. Ganz, MD, on Progress in Cancer Survivorship Care”

Via ASCO Post — Patricia A. Ganz, MD, of the University of California, Los Angeles, and this year’s recipient of the Ellen Stovall Award for Advancement of Cancer Survivorship Care, discusses her 30-year-long career researching and advocating for survivors and quality care.
Read the post on ASCOpost.com »