Pharmacist-facilitated Patient Reported Outcome Measure (PROM) monitoring: developing an EHR SmartForm© to monitor side effects of oral oncolytics during routine telehealth encounters.

Purpose: Patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) are increasingly used in oncology care, but pharmacists providing direct patient care have been overlooked. We engaged pharmacists and adults receiving oral oncolytics (chemotherapy medication taken by mouth) to develop a SmartForm© in the electronic health record (EHR) for PROM monitoring. Pharmacists verbally ask the patient side effect questions during routine telehealth encounters and enter responses in real time.

Chemotherapy safe handling practices in Ethiopia: A comprehensive multi-center evaluation.

Introduction: The increasing incidence of cancer and capacity for cancer care in Ethiopia has led to an upsurge in chemotherapy use in the country; however, studies indicate that there is a gap in the safe handling of chemotherapy by healthcare workers. There exists a need to understand if such unsafe practices occur in Ethiopia and, if so, which areas along the chemotherapy life cycle need the most improvement.

Methods: This study utilized a multi-method design through an online survey administered to health care professionals and evaluative site visits of eight cancer units in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to understand the current conditions of chemotherapy handling.

Multicenter evaluation of the addition of eltrombopag to immunosuppressive therapy for adults with severe aplastic anemia.

Eltrombopag has been shown to improve response rates when added to standard therapy in adults with severe aplastic anemia in controlled trial settings. However, outcomes in real-world populations have mostly been examined in small retrospective studies. This robust, multicenter, retrospective cohort study across six academic health systems compared outcomes in patients who received immunosuppressive therapy with or without eltrombopag.

Outpatient initiation of venetoclax in patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

Introduction: Venetoclax is a treatment option in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in both the front-line and relapsed/refractory settings. Initiation of therapy has been previously restricted to the inpatient setting at some institutions due to a risk of tumor lysis syndrome (TLS) and limitations in medication access efficiency given the high cost of therapy.

Methods: We assessed the safety of initiating venetoclax in the outpatient setting through a single-arm, retrospective study of adult AML patients between April 1, 2019 and June 30, 2020.

Processes and perceptions of chemotherapy supply chain in Ethiopia: A mixed-method study.

Background: The impact and downstream effects of the chemotherapy supply chain in Ethiopia are not well understood. The purpose of this study was to identify perceived gaps in supply chain and characterize their impact on patient care.

Methods: A concurrent mixed-method study was conducted at a large academic cancer center in Ethiopia.

Solving coagulation conundrums: comparing prophylaxis strategies in adult patients receiving PEG-asparaginase.

PEG-asparaginase is a key component in treatment regimens for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Major side effects include thrombosis and bleeding; however, there is currently no consensus on methods to prevent these complications. In this multi-center retrospective cohort study of 101 adults, we compared two prophylaxis strategies: cryoprecipitate and fresh frozen plasma (Cryo/FFP) versus cryoprecipitate and antithrombin (ATIII).

Role of the Advanced Practitioner in the Management of Oral Chemotherapy for Adults With AML.

Recent advances have resulted in an expansion of treatment options for AML, especially targeted therapies and low-intensity regimens. At JADPRO Live Virtual 2021, presenters reviewed novel and targeted oral chemotherapy for adults with AML and discussed multidisciplinary collaboration for patients with complex AML chemotherapy regimens.

Multicenter comparison of first salvage chemotherapy versus novel therapy regimens in adult relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) represent a heterogeneous population and therefore there is no standard of care first salvage regimen. We conducted a multicenter, retrospective analysis to compare chemotherapy (e.g.

Evaluation of an interdisciplinary venetoclax initiation process in minimizing risk of tumor lysis syndrome.

Venetoclax is a BCL-2 inhibitor approved for treatment of adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Due to significant risk of tumor lysis syndrome (TLS) upon treatment initiation, a 5-week dose ramp-up is recommended. University of North Carolina Medical Center (UNCMC) utilizes a novel interdisciplinary model of care involving clinical pharmacists (CPs) who oversee the 5-week ramp-up to minimize treatment-related adverse events.

Impact of Oncology Pharmacists on the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Clinicians to Enhance Patient Engagement of Self-Administered Oral Oncolytics.

Oncology clinical pharmacists are uniquely positioned to make interventions to impact the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of clinicians as well as patient activation and engagement. To accomplish this goal, pharmacists can target health system-related, provider-related, and patient-related factors to enhance patient-centered care and drive behavioral health changes. Interventions that pharmacists must tackle include educating team members and patients on the medication acquisition process, communicating urgency of treatment, optimizing workflows, facilitating guideline recommendations, preventing, and managing treatment toxicities, and promoting patient self-advocacy through education and shared decision-making.

Results of a pre-implementation analysis of Ethiopia's National Pediatric Cancer Registry.

In Ethiopia, cancer accounts for about 5.8% of total national mortality, with an estimated annual incidence of cancer of approximately 60,960 cases and an annual mortality of over 44,000 persons. This is likely an underestimation.

Pharmacists' Role in Managing Patients with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a hematologic malignancy that has seen significant advances in care over the last 5 years with the approval of oral agents such as ibrutinib and venetoclax for the treatment of this disease. As such, there has been a substantial shift away from the traditional chemotherapy infusions which have allowed patients greater autonomy with oral cancer therapies. This paradigm shift poses new challenges for the medical team, including drug-drug interactions, adherence counseling, and financial toxicity.

Effect of concomitant vancomycin and piperacillin-tazobactam on frequency of acute kidney injury in pediatric patients.

Purpose: Results of a study of rates of acute kidney injury (AKI) in pediatric patients treated with vancomycin plus piperacillin-tazobactam or vancomycin plus alternative antipseudomonal β-lactams (APBLs) are reported.

Methods: A retrospective, single-center cohort study was performed. Pediatric patients were included in the study cohort if they received combination therapy for at least 48 hours, had documented baseline and follow-up serum creatinine levels, and had a documented serum vancomycin trough concentration.

Effects of Dicloxacillin on Warfarin Dose in Patients With a Left Ventricular Assist Device.

Patients with a durable, continuous flow left ventricular assist device (CF-LVAD) require anticoagulation with warfarin to prevent thromboembolic events. Driveline infections (DLIs) are a common CF-LVAD complication. A common pathogen implicated in DLI is oxacillin-sensitive (OSSA), which is effectively treated by oral dicloxacillin.

Identifying Shared Values for School-Affiliated Student Organizations.

To identify shared values for student organizations. A three-round Delphi approach was utilized to identify and prioritize shared values among student organization leadership. In round 1, student leaders selected 15 values from a list of 36 organizational values and were given an opportunity to include up to five suggestions not incorporated within the original list.

A Comparison of Clofarabine-based (GCLAC) and Cladribine-based (CLAG) Salvage Chemotherapy for Relapsed/Refractory AML.

Background: Salvage regimens for patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (rrAML) lack comparative data for superiority. Thus, we conducted a retrospective analysis of clofarabine-based (GCLAC; granulocyte colony-stimulating factor [filgrastim], clofarabine, high-dose cytarabine) versus cladribine-based (CLAG; cladribine, cytarabine, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor [filgrastim]) regimens in rrAML.

Patients And Methods: We identified 41 consecutive patients with rrAML who had received either GCLAC or CLAG from 2011 to 2014.