Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research (IPCOR) registry: cohort profile.

Purpose: To describe the Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research (IPCOR) registry. The cohort was collected to inform and improve the prostate cancer journey of men in Ireland.

Participants: Established in 2015, IPCOR was a unique large-scale prospective cohort study registering men with prostate cancer in Ireland.

Are we there yet? Closing the gap of prostate cancer presentation disparities in Ireland.

Introduction: The Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research (IPCOR) Study collected longitudinal data on men newly diagnosed with Prostate Cancer (PC). Understanding the nuances of disease presentation is essential, considering the high incidence of PC in Ireland. This study aims to characterise disease presentation features, identify factors related to socio demographic disparities in presentation following opportunistic screening, and shed light on potential inequality challenges within Ireland's healthcare structure.

A phase II, open-label, single-arm trial of pembrolizumab for recurrent meningioma and solitary fibrous tumor.

Background: Atypical and anaplastic meningiomas account for 20% of all meningioma cases. Solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) is a type of soft tissue sarcoma with similar attributes to meningioma. For patients with refractory or recurrent disease after previous surgery or radiotherapy, there is no effective treatment.

Early prediction of residual disease after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and cetuximab for locally advanced esophageal cancer using F-FDG PET-CT imaging: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Previous studies in locally advanced esophageal cancer (LAEC) suggested that a change in the tumor's metabolic response, i.e., decrease of its interim F-FDG uptake compared with baseline, may predict histopathological response.

Differences in Toxicity Between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews With Colon Cancer Treated With Adjuvant Chemotherapy: A Prospective Study.

Background/aim: Ethnicity of cancer patients is increasingly being recognized as an important factor that may influence intergroup variation in toxicity and efficacy of chemotherapy. Data from our institution suggested that differences in chemotherapy-associated toxicity are not limited to distanced ethnic subgroups, such as Caucasians, Afro-Americans, or Asians, but may exist even between two closely related Caucasian ethnic subgroups, such as Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews. This study aimed to explore differences in severity and frequency of various side effects, including neurotoxicity between patients from the two Jewish subgroups receiving oxaliplatin-containing adjuvant chemotherapy for colon cancer (CC).

Factors Associated With Off-Label Oncology Prescriptions: The Role of Cost and Financing in a Universal Healthcare System.

Various solutions have been put forward for prescribing and reimbursing treatments outside their registered indications within universal healthcare systems. However, most off-label oncology prescriptions are not reimbursed by health funds. This study characterized the financing sources of off-label oncology use and the predictors of the decision to forego treatment.

Bevacizumab for stereotactic radiosurgery-induced radiation necrosis in patients with non-small cell lung cancer treated with immune check-point inhibitors.

Background: Bevacizumab was shown to be effective in the treatment of brain radiation necrosis (RN) attributed to the use of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). Data on its efficacy and safety in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with immune check-point inhibitors (ICI) is lacking.

Methods: A multi-center retrospective analysis of all consecutive patients with NSCLC treated with ICI, who received bevacizumab for post-SRS RN between April 2017 and June 2020.

Next-generation sequencing in thyroid cancers: do targetable alterations lead to a therapeutic advantage?: A multicenter experience.

Radioiodine-refractory thyroid cancers (IRTCs) are uncommon and have a poor prognosis. Treatment options for radioiodine-refractory and anaplastic tumors (ATCs) are limited. Although the genomic landscape of thyroid cancer has been studied, there is little evidence on whether next-generation sequencing (NGS) findings translate to tumor control.

Fractionation scheme and treatment planning method for early glottic cancer in the United States: Economic impact of different medical decisions.

Background: Early glottic cancers are often treated with radiotherapy (RT). We assessed the economic impact of fractionation scheme and planning method for payers in the United States.

Methods: A population-based analysis of the total cost of RT for early glottic cancers in the United States was performed annually.

Young-onset gastric cancer and Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) - a major player in the pathogenesis?

Objective: Gastric cancer (GC) is a leading cause of cancer death, occurs predominantly in older age, with increasing incidence in young patients. The Cancer Genome Atlas indicates four subtypes for GC among which Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) subtype is estimated at 8.7%.

Next-generation sequencing in salivary gland carcinoma: Targetable alterations lead to a therapeutic advantage-Multicenter experience.

Background: Salivary gland cancers (SGCs) are rare. The approach to metastatic patients is histology-dependent. There is little evidence on whether next-generation sequencing (NGS) findings translate to tumor control in SGCs.

The Financial Impact of Fractionation Scheme and Treatment Planning Method for Rectal Cancer in the United States.

Background: Preoperative long-course chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and short-course radiotherapy (SCR) for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) were found to have equivalent outcomes in 3 randomized trials. SCR has not been widely adopted in the United States (US). Three-dimensional (3D) treatment planning is standard, whereas intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) is controversial.

The addition of cetuximab to preoperative chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma is associated with high rate of long term survival: Mature results from a prospective phase Ib/II trial.

Aim: This phase IB/II study evaluated the safety and efficacy of the addition of cetuximab to standard preoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT) in locally advanced esophageal cancer (LAEC).

Methods: Patients (pts) with resectable LAEC (TNM, TNM or TNM received an induction cycle of cisplatin 100 mg/m, day 1, and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) 1000 mg/m/day, days 1-5, followed 4 weeks later by radiotherapy, 50.4 Gy, given with 2 cycles of cisplatin 75 mg/m and escalating doses of 5-FU, days 1-4 and 29-32.

The Financial Impact of Hypofractionated Radiation for Localized Prostate Cancer in the United States.

Background: Until recently, dose intensified radiotherapy was the standard radiation method for localized prostate cancer. Multiple studies have demonstrated similar efficacy and tolerability with moderate hypofractionation. In recent years there has been an increasing focus placed on understanding the cost and value of cancer care.

Early PET-CT in patients with pathological stage III colon cancer may improve their outcome: Results from a large retrospective study.

Background: Current staging of pathological stage III colon cancer (CC) is suboptimal; many patients recur despite unremarkable preoperative staging. We previously reported that early postoperative PET-CT can alter the stage and management of up to 15% of patients with high-risk stage III CC. This study aimed to determine the role of the test in the general stage III CC population.

A real-world analysis of cancer drug wastage due to oversized vials.

Objectives: A recent theoretical economic model suggested that oversized vials of cancer drugs lead to $1.8 billion of drug wastage annually in the United States. It is currently unknown how precisely this theoretical model is consistent with the real world.

Cost-effectiveness of Pembrolizumab in Second-line Advanced Bladder Cancer.

Background: Immune-modulating drugs have recently been introduced to the second-line setting of advanced bladder cancer. Pembrolizumab increases overall survival and is associated with less toxicity compared with chemotherapy in this setting based on the Keynote 045 study. The high cost of immunotherapy necessitates an assessment of its value by considering both efficacy and cost.

Brain metastasis in gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma and HER2 status.

The increased survival of patients with gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GAD) following improvements in treatment has been accompanied by a rising incidence of secondary brain metastasis. HER2 amplification/overexpression, which has been associated with an increased risk of brain metastasis in breast cancer, is found in about 20% of patients with GAD. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of HER2 status on brain metastasis in GAD.

A Phamacoeconomic Analysis of Personalized Dosing vs Fixed Dosing of Pembrolizumab in Firstline PD-L1-Positive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: In October 2016, pembrolizumab became the new standard of care for firstline treatment of patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC) whose tumors express programmed death ligand 1 in at least 50% of cells. The US Food and Drug Administration-recommended dose is 200 mg every three weeks. Multiple studies have demonstrated equivalent efficacy with weight-based doses between 2 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg.

Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for definitive treatment and as a bridge to liver transplantation in early stage inoperable Hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background And Purpose: Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is an emerging modality for definitive treatment of Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study included all early stage HCC patients who were not candidates for primary resection and/or local therapy, treated with SBRT between 11/2011 and 1/2016.

Results: Twenty-three patients were included.

Trajectories of Injectable Cancer Drug Costs After Launch in the United States.

Purpose Cancer drug prices at launch have increased in recent years. It is unclear how individual drug prices change over time after launch and what market determinants influence these changes. We measured the price trajectories of a cohort of cancer drugs after their launch into the US market and assessed the influence of market structure on price changes.

Esophageal Cancer in Israel has Unique Clinico-Pathological Features: A Retrospective Study.

Data regarding esophageal cancer (EC) in Israel are limited. The aim of this study was hence to characterize this entity in the Israeli population and to compare it to the literature. This is a retrospective study of all consecutive EC patients treated at our institution between 1997-2013.

Cost Effectiveness of Nivolumab in Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Background: In recent years, new drugs have been introduced for second-line treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Nivolumab increases overall survival and is associated with less toxicity compared to everolimus in this setting according to the CheckMate 025 study. However, because of the high cost of nivolumab, there is a need to define its value by considering both efficacy and cost.

RET Fusion Lung Carcinoma: Response to Therapy and Clinical Features in a Case Series of 14 Patients.

Background: RET (rearranged during transfection) fusions have been reported in 1% to 2% of lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) cases. In contrast, KIF5B-RET and CCDC6-RET fusion genes have been identified in 70% to 90% and 10% to 25% of tumors, respectively. The natural history and management of RET-rearranged LADC are still being delineated.

The cost and value of cancer drugs - are new innovations outpacing our ability to pay?

Cancer drug expenditures have been increasing significantly in countries around the world. A recent paper in the IJHPR provides new knowledge and insights into this global phenomenon by analyzing how it is playing out in an Israeli health plan with over two million members, whose state-of-the-art information systems provide an opportunity to explore these changes in a comprehensive, detailed and reliable manner. There is a wide variation in both the cost-effectiveness and the budget impact of individual drugs.