CANCER BUZZ Association of Cancer Care Centers

This rule-based informatics solution pulls from the electronic health record to automate the election of an appropriate biosimilar therapy based on the patient’s insurance and hospital formulary preferences, streamlining prior authorization and approval processes. This e-tool decreased administrative burden to providers, pharmacists, and prior authorization specialists and increased biosimilar utilization by 21.9%.
Guest:
Sarah Hudson-DiSalle, PharmD, RPh, FACCC
Assistant Director of Reimbursement Services
The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute
 
“Using an EHR auto-selection tool that takes into consideration insurance preferences and contractual relationships to provide a proactive solution has helped our providers, our pharmacists, and our prior authorization specialists.”
 
Hear more about this innovation at the ACCC 41st National Oncology Conference, October 9-11, 2024, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
 
Resources:
Biosimilars Implementation Roadmap
[MINI PODCAST] Ep 103: Precision Medicine: Robots, Biologics, and Advocates: Lessons from the Pharmacy
Improve Oral Oncolytic Workflow and Reduce Treatment Delays with a Pharmacist Collaborative Practice Agreement
Shifting Chemo Administration from Inpatient to Outpatient Setting Improves Care and Reduces Costs
Reducing Revenue Loss and Patient Financial Toxicity with Pharmacy Pre-Certification and Denials Management
[PODCAST] Ep 39: Biosimilars—What Patients Need to Know

As the use of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy continues to expand as an effective treatment for hematologic malignancies, understanding how to identify eligible patients early and implementation of an effective framework for identification can improve care coordination and better prepare community cancer programs for widespread use of CAR T-cell therapy. In this episode, CANCER BUZZ speaks with David L. Porter, MD, director of Cell Therapy and Transplant at Penn Medicine, about the challenges community oncologists face and the key role they can play in identifying and recommending eligible patients for CAR T-cell therapy.
 
“The single most important thing for a patient out in the community at a place that doesn’t have familiarity or immediate access to CAR T-cells is to refer them somewhere that does and refer them soon and timely.” – David L. Porter, MD
 
Guest: 
David L. Porter, MD
Director, Cell Therapy and Transplant
Jodi Fisher Horowitz Professor in Leukemia Care Excellence
Penn Medicine- University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS)
Philadelphia, PA
 
This episode has been developed in connection with the ACCC education program Tips for Early Patient Identification for CAR T-Cell Therapy and Creating “Stickiness” with Community Providers for Optimal Care Coordination. This episode was made possible with support by Kite Pharma.
 
Additional Reading/Sources
ACCC Oncology Issues Article
If They RECUR, You Should Refer: A Community Oncologist Patient ID Roundtable Summary
Essentials for Identifying Patients – Bringing CAR T-cell Therapy to Community Oncology
Optimizing Care Coordination – Bringing CAR T-cell Therapy to Community Oncology

Social determinants of health have been proven to impact access to care, but further delineation is necessary to describe their effect on treatment selection itself. To mitigate this knowledge gap, the Association of Cancer Care Centers (ACCC) sought to identify the impact that social determinants of health may have on guideline-concordant treatment selection in hormone receptor positive, HER2 negative, metastatic breast cancer and early breast cancer. In this episode, CANCER BUZZ speaks with Niharika Dixit, MD, medical oncologist at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and professor of medicine at UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Dixit sheds light on inadequate insurance coverage and the challenges faced by health systems during comprehensive treatment planning. She considers the impact of social determinants of health on screening, timely diagnosis, treatment tolerability, and adherence.

“Many of the patients who have barriers related to social determinants of health would not be included in the clinical trials that determine the guidelines for treating breast cancer. I cannot overstate the importance of that—addressing social determinants of health brings more patients who are from racial and ethnic minoritized groups, who would make our clinical trials richer and our evidence-based guidelines more generalizable.”—Niharika Dixit, MD

Niharika Dixit, MD
Medical Oncologist
Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital
San Francisco, CA
Professor of Medicine
UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
San Francisco, CA
This podcast was developed in connection with the ACCC educational initiative Social Drivers of Health in Metastatic Breast Cancer and made possible with support by Pfizer.
Resources:
ACCC Social Drivers of Health in Metastatic Breast Cancer
Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity
 

Immunotherapy is redefining survivorship to include an increasing population of patients who live with cancer and navigate toxicities that differ from those that accompany traditional treatments. In this episode, CANCER BUZZ speaks with Brittney Baer, BSN, RN, patient care coordinator for the Immune Effector Cell program at Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, about key strategies and solutions to prioritize patient quality of life by addressing barriers to holistic survivorship care. 
“I think simply talking to your patients and seeing what they would like to see [in terms of survivorship care] out of your cancer center—you don't have to start a huge holistic program right away...whether it be a nutritional program, a one-day-a-week meditation class, or a yoga class...start small and then start growing from there.”—Brittney Baer, BSN, RN
Brittney Baer, BSN, RN
Patient Care Coordinator, Immune Effector Cell Program 
Vanderbilt University Medical Center - Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center 
 Nashville, TN 
 
This episode was made possible by support from Bristol Myers Squibb and developed in connection with ACCC’s Immuno-Oncology Institute, which is made possible by support from Bristol Myers Squibb, Merck & Co., and AstraZeneca.
Resources:
About the Institute - ACCC 
IO Institute Survivorship Resources 
State of Survivorship Survey - NCCS 

Germline and somatic testing for  in prostate cancer can improve outcomes and promote early detection and prevention, yet many patients are not aware of testing and the impact it can have on treatment options. In this episode, CANCER BUZZ speaks with David Gill, MD, medical oncologist at Intermountain Healthcare’s Intermountain Cancer Center and Lindsey Byrne, MS, LCGC, licensed certified genetic counselor at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, who discuss how genetic counselors and increased patient education can help cancer programs close the practice gap and promote guideline-concordant testing among patients diagnosed with prostate cancer.  
 
“I’d really advocate—even in your patients with a negative NGS panel—please still consider getting germline testing in those patients.” –David Gill, MD
 
“We know that individuals, yes, they’re dealing with a diagnosis of cancer, but the first thing people say to me when I sit down with them is, ‘All right, I have this figured out, but what does this mean for my family?’ They’re really worried about their family, and that’s where our focus is, to help take care of that.”—Lindsey Byrne, MS, LCGC
 
David Gill, MD 
Medical Oncologist  
Intermountain Healthcare - Intermountain Cancer Center  
Salt Lake City, Utah 
 
Lindsey Byrne, MS, LCGC 
Licensed Certified Genetic Counselor 
The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – The James
Columbus, Ohio 
 
This episode was developed in connection with the ACCC education program Germline and Somatic Testing for Mutations to Optimize Outcomes in Metastatic Prostate Cancer and is supported by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer.
 
Resources:
Germline and Somatic Testing for Mutations to Optimize Outcomes in Metastatic Prostate Cancer - ACCC
Abstract: Homologous recombination repair gene mutation (HRRm) testing patterns and treatment selection from a real-world cohort of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) 
Abstract: Utilization of genetic counseling and testing for patients with prostate cancer following integration of a genetic counselor into a genitourinary cancer clinic 

Anemia can negatively affect quality of life and treatment outcomes for patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia. In this episode, CANCER BUZZ speaks with Amy DeZern, MD, MHS, director, Bone Marrow Failure and MDS Program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, Donald Moore, PharmD, BCPS, BCOP, DPLA, FCCP, clinical oncology pharmacy manager, Atrium Health Levine Cancer in Charlotte, North Carolina, and David Sallman, MD, assistant member, Department of Malignant Hematology, Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. Their discussion elucidates an array of patient-centered approaches, touches on social determinants of health, and highlights collaborative measures to support care coordination in the management of anemia in patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia.
 
“It really does take a village to manage the anemia of high-risk MDS…We as providers need to think through transfusion mitigation strategies but also keep our patients safe.” –Amy DeZern, MD, MHS
 
“Health disparities can play a really important role in affecting outcomes. And a lot of that is multifactorial—it may be due to patients without insurance having a higher tendency to delay seeking care due to the associated cost of seeking medical attention, and therefore they may present sicker.”—Donald Moore, PharmD, BCPS, BCOP, DPLA, FCCP
“There’s no question, especially as therapies are getting more complex, and the side effects as far as the severity of cytopenias are increasing, this collaboration between blood bank centers and community oncologists is going to be increasingly important.”—David Sallman, MD
Amy DeZern, MD, MHS
Director, Bone Marrow Failure and MDS Program
Professor of Oncology and Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Baltimore, MD
 
Donald Moore, PharmD, BCPS, BCOP, DPLA, FCCP
Clinical Oncology Pharmacy Manager
Atrium Health Levine Cancer
Charlotte, NC
 
David Sallman, MD
Assistant Member, Department of Malignant Hematology
Moffitt Cancer Center
Tampa, Florida
 
This episode was developed in connection with an initiative of the ACCC education program Myelodyplastic Syndromes, Optimal Management of Anemia in Adults with High-Risk MDS, which is supported by Gilead.
 
Resources:
Myelodysplastic Syndromes - ACCC
Achieving & Maintaining Better Outcomes for Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia Project - ACCC
Disparities in Acute Myeloid Leukemia - ACCC