Medicine availability and affordability for paediatric cancers, China.

Objective: To investigate access to essential anticancer medicines for children throughout China.

Methods: We obtained cross-sectional drug use data for 2021 from 55 tertiary children's hospitals in seven geographical regions (one third of public children's hospitals in mainland China). Affordability was assessed by comparing the single-day copayment for each medicine with the same generic name and route of administration (i.

Disparity in Guideline-Based Antidiabetic Drugs Prescribing for Type 2 Diabetes Patients in Primary Healthcare Facilities Across China, 2017-2019.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the pattern, appropriateness, and cost of antidiabetic drugs prescribed for patients with Type 2 diabetes at primary healthcare facilities (PHFs) in China.

Methods: We collected outpatient-visit prescriptions from 363 PHFs in 31 cities covering eastern, central, and western regions of China. The visits of adult patients with Type 2 diabetes diagnosis were collected and classified the antidiabetic medication pattern of each patient use as recommended or non-recommended according to Chinese guidelines.

Cost-effectiveness of durvalumab plus tremelimumab in combination with chemotherapy for the treatment of metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer from the US healthcare sector's and societal perspectives.

Purpose: Metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC) has a high incidence rate, and economic burdens to patients, healthcare systems, and societies. Durvalumab plus tremelimumab and chemotherapy (T+D+CT) is a novel therapeutic strategy for mNSCLC, which demonstrated promising efficacy in a phase-3 randomized clinical trial, but its economic value remains unclear.

Methods: This economic evaluation used a hypothetical cohort of patients with mNSCLC, with characteristics mirroring those of the participants in the POSEIDON trial.

Improvements in the health-related quality-of-life benefit of cancer drugs approved in China, 2005-2020: an observational study.

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), along with overall survival (OS), is a critical study endpoint for measuring the clinical benefits of cancer drugs. Previous studies have examined the OS benefit of new cancer drugs approved in China. However, their HRQoL benefits have not been systematically evaluated.

Cancer drug indication approvals in China and the United States: a comparison of approval times and clinical benefit, 2001-2020.

Background: Perceived delays in cancer drug approvals have been a major concern for policymakers in China. Policies have been implemented to accelerate the launch of new cancer drugs and indications. This study aimed to assess similarities and differences between China and the United States in the approvals, timing, and clinical benefit evidence of cancer drug indications between 2001 and 2020.

Prevalence of aggressive care among patients with cancer near the end of life: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Aggressive care near patients' end-of-life (EOL) entails limited therapeutic values, high costs, and compromised quality of life (QoL). In this study, we aimed to estimate the global prevalence of aggressive care in patients with cancer and explore potential subgroup differences.

Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library from database inception to Feb 16, 2024.

Use of suboptimal control arms in randomized clinical trials of investigational cancer drugs in China, 2016-2021: An observational study.

Background: The use of suboptimal controls in randomized trials of new cancer drugs can produce potentially unreliable clinical efficacy results over the current standard of care and expose patients to substandard therapy. We aim to investigate the proportion of randomized trials of investigational cancer drugs that used a suboptimal control arm and the number of trial participants at risk of exposure to suboptimal treatments in China. The association between the use of a suboptimal control and concluding statistical significance on the primary endpoint was also examined.

Evaluation of prescription review and feedback policy on rational antibiotic use in primary healthcare settings in Beijing, China: a qualitative study using the Theoretical Domains Framework and the behaviour change wheel.

Objectives: To decelerate antibiotic resistance driven by inappropriate antibiotic prescribing, a prescription review and feedback (PRF) policy is implemented in primary healthcare institutions (PHIs) in Beijing, China. However, evaluation of PRF implementation in PHIs is scarce. This study aims to systematically identify the barriers and facilitators of PRF policy implementation to provide evidence for antimicrobial stewardship.

Sponsorship bias in published pharmacoeconomic evaluations of national reimbursement negotiation drugs in China: a systematic review.

Background: China's National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL) has become the primary route for drug reimbursement in China. More recently, the authority has made pharmacoeconomic evaluation an integral part of the application for NRDL inclusion. The underlying financial conflict of interests (FCOI) of pharmacoeconomic evaluations, however, has the potential to influence evidence generated and thus subsequent decision-making yet remains poorly understood.

'I feel that I should decide on my own….': who should be involved in the decision-making process for adolescent involvement in HIV research?

Introduction: Efforts to improve health outcomes among adolescents and young adults living with HIV (ALHs) are hampered by limited adolescent engagement in HIV-related research. We sought to understand the views of adolescents, caregivers and healthcare workers (HCWs) about who should make decisions regarding ALHs' research participation.

Methods: We conducted focus group discussions (FGDs) and in-depth interviews (IDIs) with ALHs (aged 14-24 years), caregivers of ALHs and HCWs from six HIV care clinics in Western Kenya.

Appropriate use of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections at primary healthcare facilities in China: a nationwide cross-sectional study from 2017 to 2019.

Background: The appropriateness of antibiotic use for acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in Chinese primary healthcare facilities (PHFs) remained uncertain. We aimed to evaluate to what degree antibiotic prescribing for ARIs were aligned with guideline recommendations in primary settings across China.

Methods: We collected outpatient prescriptions from 262 Chinese PHFs in 27 cities of six provinces between 2017 and 2019.

The impact of government reimbursement negotiation on targeted anticancer medicines use and cost in China: A cohort study based on national health insurance data.

Background: High prices of targeted anticancer medicines (TAMs) result in financial toxicity for patients and the health insurance system. How national price negotiation and reimbursement policy affect the accessibility of TAMs for cancer patients remains unknown.

Methods: In this population-based cohort study, we used national health insurance claims data in 2017 and identified adult patients with cancer diagnoses for which price-negotiated TAMs were indicated.

Effectiveness of hierarchical medical system policy: an interrupted time series analysis of a pilot scheme in China.

The Chinese healthcare system faces a dilemma between its hospital-centric approach to healthcare delivery and a rapidly ageing population that requires strong primary care. To improve system efficiency and continuity of care, the Hierarchical Medical System (HMS) policy package was issued in November 2014 and fully implemented in 2015 in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, China. This study aimed to investigate the impact of the HMS on the local healthcare system.

"[T]he laws need to change to reflect current society": Insights from stakeholders involved in development, review or implementation of policies about adolescent consent for HIV testing, care and research in Kenya.

Introduction: Engaging adolescents in HIV care and research promotes the development of interventions tailored to their unique needs. Guidelines generally require parental permission for adolescents to receive HIV care/testing or participate in research, with exceptions. Nevertheless, parental permission requirements can restrict adolescent involvement in care and research.

Inappropriate antibiotic prescribing in primary healthcare facilities in China: a nationwide survey, 2017-2019.

Objectives: We aimed to generate comprehensive estimates of the appropriateness of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions at primary healthcare facilities (PHFs) in China.

Methods: Between 2017 and 2019, we collected outpatient-visit prescriptions from 269 Chinese PHFs in 31 cities located in 6 provinces. Conditions that resulted in antibiotic use were classified into appropriate, potentially appropriate, and inappropriate using a well-established classification approach.

Effect of the full coverage policy of essential medicines on medication adherence: A quasi-experimental study in Taizhou, China.

Objective: Different forms of full coverage policy of essential medicines (FCPEMs) have been adopted worldwide to lower medication expenditure and improve adherence. This study aims to analyse the effect of FCPEMs on patients' medication adherence in Taizhou city, China.

Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental study and set treatment and control groups.

The Impact of Sanming Healthcare Reform on Antibiotic Appropriate Use in County Hospitals in China.

Background: The excessive use of resources and poor quality of care are great concerns worldwide, particularly in China. In 2013, a model of systematic reforms was developed in Sanming to address the inefficiency and waste in public hospitals. However, limited empirical studies have evaluated the effect of Sanming healthcare reform on antibiotic appropriate use.

Prices and Clinical Benefit of National Price-Negotiated Anticancer Medicines in China.

Background: High prices of anticancer medicines have increased the economic burden for both patients and health insurance systems. Since 2017, China has implemented national price negotiations for medicines, relying on evidence from health technology assessments. We aim to assess the relation between negotiated price and value of anticancer medicines listed in China's National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL).

Effects of the Full Coverage Policy of Essential Medicines on Inequality in Medication Adherence: A Longitudinal Study in Taizhou, China.

The full coverage policy for essential medicines (FCPEMs) was proposed and implemented in Taizhou city of Zhejiang Province, China, to promote equal access and adherence to medicines. This study aimed to examine the effects of FCPEMs on the income-related inequality in medication adherence among local patients with hypertension or diabetes. We collected electronic health records of patients with hypertension or diabetes of three districts of Taizhou from 2011 to 2016.