Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Cancer Researchers Report Promising Results In Various Drug Studies
Stat: Targeted Drug Greatly Slows Growth Of A Brain Cancer
An experimental drug dramatically slowed the growth of glioma, a type of brain cancer, if the tumor carried a specific type of genetic alteration, researchers said Sunday, potentially sparing patients exposure to radiation and chemotherapy. (Herper, 6/4)
Stat: ‘Extraordinary’ Data Reported For AstraZeneca Lung Cancer Drug
Giving the AstraZeneca drug Tagrisso to patients with non-small cell lung cancer who have had their tumors removed reduced the risk of death by 51%, researchers said Sunday. Put another way, that would mean that about one in 10 patients who received the drug would live another five years. (Chen and Herper, 6/4)
Stat: ImmunoGen Drug Prolongs Survival In Advanced Ovarian Cancer
An antibody that delivers chemotherapy directly to tumor cells extended the lives of women with a form of advanced ovarian cancer in a large study, researchers reported Sunday. The drug, called Elahere, is made by the biotech company ImmunoGen. It was granted conditional approval in the U.S. last November based on preliminary evidence showing it shrank tumors. (Feuerstein, 6/4)
In other news about cancer drugs and vaccines —
Axios: Post-Public Health Emergency Fallout Hits Patients
Cancer doctors and dozens of lawmakers in Congress are questioning whether the federal health department overreached when it blocked medical practices from mailing specialty drugs like oral cancer and blood clotting treatments directly to patients at the end of the COVID public health emergency. (Reed, 6/5)
Politico: How Covid Made It Nearly Impossible To Pass New Vaccine Rules
The HPV vaccine has been around for almost two decades and could spare thousands of people from developing cervical and oral cancer — so mandating it for schoolchildren once seemed an easy call for Democrats in deep-blue California. But a bill to do just that has been watered down beyond recognition in one of the most liberal states in the U.S., a victim of a homegrown anti-vaccine movement that has become more organized and more successful since the pandemic. (Bluth, 6/4)
