Risk of cardiovascular events following intermittent and continuous androgen deprivation therapy in patients with nonmetastatic prostate cancer.

Background: Intermittent androgen deprivation therapy (iADT) alleviates some side effects of continuous (c) ADT in patients with prostate cancer (PC), but its relative impact on ADT-associated comorbidities is uncertain. We assessed real-world use of iADT and cADT and associated risk of cardiovascular and endocrine/metabolic events in patients with nonmetastatic (nm) PC.

Methods: This retrospective longitudinal cohort study included patients with nmPC initiating systemic ADT with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists (goserelin, histrelin, leuprolide, and triptorelin) or antagonists (degarelix) in the US Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results-Medicare database (2010-2017), who had ≥ 36 months of continuous insurance coverage, unless death occurred, and did not receive chemotherapy or next-generation hormonal therapies during follow-up (through 2019).

Treatment Patterns and Clinical Outcomes Among Patients With Metastatic Prostate Cancer Harboring Homologous Recombination Repair Mutations.

Background: There is currently limited literature assessing the real-world treatment patterns and clinical outcomes of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) and homologous recombination repair (HRR) mutations.

Methods: Medical charts were abstracted for mCRPC patients with ≥ 1 of 12 HRR somatic gene alterations treated at US oncology centers participating in the American Association for Cancer Research Project Genomics Evidence Neoplasia Information Exchange. Treatment patterns and clinical outcomes were assessed from the initiation of first-line or later (1L+) mCRPC therapy received on or after July 1, 2014.

Real-World Effectiveness of Sotrovimab for the Early Treatment of COVID-19: Evidence from the US National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C).

Background And Objective: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been an unprecedented healthcare crisis, one that threatened to overwhelm health systems and prompted an urgent need for early treatment options for patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 at high risk for progression to severe disease. Randomised clinical trials established the safety and efficacy of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) early in the pandemic; in vitro data subsequently led to use of the mAbs being discontinued, without clear evidence on how these data were linked to outcomes. In this study, we describe and compare real-world outcomes for patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19 treated with sotrovimab versus untreated patients.

Patient-centric assessment of rheumatoid arthritis using a smartwatch and bespoke mobile app in a clinical setting.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a fluctuating progressive disease requiring frequent symptom assessment for appropriate management. Continuous tracking using digital technologies may provide greater insights of a patient's experience. This prospective study assessed the feasibility, reliability, and clinical utility of using novel digital technologies to remotely monitor participants with RA.

Long-Term Effectiveness and Safety of Dutasteride versus Finasteride in Patients with Male Androgenic Alopecia in South Korea: A Multicentre Chart Review Study.

Background: Dutasteride improves hair growth compared with finasteride in male androgenic alopecia (AGA) and is well tolerated. However, real-world evidence for long-term dutasteride use in AGA is lacking.

Objective: To describe baseline characteristics, treatment patterns and long-term safety and effectiveness of dutasteride versus finasteride.

Efficacy of avapritinib versus best available therapy in the treatment of advanced systemic mastocytosis.

Advanced systemic mastocytosis (AdvSM) is a rare myeloid neoplasm associated with poor overall survival (OS). This study (NCT04695431) compared clinical outcomes between patients with AdvSM treated with avapritinib in the Phase 1 EXPLORER (NCT0256198) and Phase 2 PATHFINDER (NCT03580655) trials (N = 176) and patients treated with best available therapy (BAT; N = 141). A multi-center, observational, retrospective chart review study was conducted at six study sites (four European, two American) to collect data from patients with AdvSM who received BAT; these data were pooled with data from EXPLORER and PATHFINDER.

Real-world Treatment Patterns, Outcomes, and Healthcare Resource Utilization in Newly Treated Korean Patients With Asthma: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Purpose: Although asthma treatment guidelines recommend regular inhaled medication, real-world treatment patterns and outcomes in South Korea have not been examined. We examined real-world treatment patterns and outcomes among patients treated for asthma in South Korea.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study utilized data from the South Korean National Health Insurance database (2013-2016).

Development and Validation of a Healthcare Utilization-Based Algorithm to Identify Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Introduction: Acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) are important events that may precipitate other adverse outcomes. Accurate AECOPD event identification in electronic administrative data is essential for improving population health surveillance and practice management.

Objective: Develop codified algorithms to identify moderate and severe AECOPD in two US healthcare systems using administrative data and electronic medical records, and validate their performance by calculating positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV).

Real-world outcomes of patients with locally advanced or metastatic epithelioid sarcoma.

Background: Limited data are available on the real-world effectiveness and safety of systemic therapies for advanced (surgically unresectable and/or metastatic) epithelioid sarcoma (ES).

Methods: A retrospective medical records review was conducted in patients with advanced ES who were initiating first-line or ≥2 lines of systemic therapy (2000-2017) at 5 US cancer centers. The real-world overall response rate (rwORR), the duration of response (rwDOR), the disease control rate (rwDCR) (defined as stable disease for ≥32 weeks or any duration of response), and progression-free survival (rwPFS) were assessed by radiology reports.

Adherence to National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines for testing among high risk breast Cancer patients: a retrospective chart review study.

Background: Testing for variants can impact treatment decisions for breast cancer patients and affect surveillance and prevention strategies for both patients and their relatives. National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines recommend testing for patients at heightened risk of pathogenic variant. We examined the testing rate among high risk breast cancer patients treated in community oncology practices.

Predictors of chemoradiotherapy versus single modality therapy and overall survival among patients with unresectable, stage III non-small cell lung cancer.

Introduction: Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (cCRT) was the standard of care for patients with unresectable stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) prior to the PACIFIC trial, however, patients also received single modality therapy. This study identified predictors of therapy and differences in overall survival (OS).

Methods: This retrospective study included stage III NSCLC patients aged ≥65 years, with ≥1 claim for systemic therapy (ST) or radiotherapy (RT) within 90 days of diagnosis, identified in SEER-Medicare data (2009-2014).

Direct and Indirect Costs of Infectious Conjunctivitis in a Commercially Insured Population in the United States.

Purpose: To assess the direct and indirect costs of infectious conjunctivitis and quantify medical costs due to conjunctivitis transmission in families.

Methods: In this retrospective claims analysis from the OptumHealth Care Solutions, Inc. database (1998-2016), beneficiaries with or without at least one diagnosis of infectious conjunctivitis were identified.

Treatment patterns and overall survival among patients with unresectable, stage III non-small-cell lung cancer.

To analyze treatment patterns and overall survival (OS) across time (2009-2014) among patients with unresected, stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Stage III NSCLC patients aged ≥65 years who initiated therapy were identified using SEER-Medicare data. Among 4564 patients, 84% received chemotherapy (with or without radiotherapy), and 59% received chemoradiotherapy (CRT).

Health Care Resource Utilization and Costs Associated with Transitioning to 3-month Paliperidone Palmitate Among US Veterans.

Purpose: The aim of this article was to describe and compare treatment patterns, health care resource utilization (HRU), and health care costs before and after transition in veterans with schizophrenia who were transitioned from paliperidone palmitate given once monthly (PP1M) to paliperidone palmitate given every 3 months (PP3M) according to prescribing-information guidelines.

Methods: This retrospective, longitudinal study was conducted using electronic health records data from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Veterans were eligible for inclusion if they were aged 18years or older, had ≥1 dispensation of PP3M, were enrolled with VHA benefits for ≥24 months prior to transition to PP3M, had ≥1 schizophrenia diagnosis, were transitioned to PP3M according to prescribing-information guidelines (operationalized as no gap in PP1M treatment of >45days during the 4 months prior to PP3M transition, with the same dosage in the last 2 PP1M dispensations), and had appropriate dose conversion.