Jun 01,2023

Belong Announces Two Studies Based on RWD at ASCO 2023

Belong.Life has announced that the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has published two abstracts in its 2023 Annual Meeting Abstract Book based on data aggregated from the Belong Beating Cancer Together app. The first study (abstract 6592) examined the prevalence of restrictive behavioral practices among cancer patients, analyzing restrictions related to interactions with others, visiting public places and more. The second study (abstract e18774) explored patients’ awareness of the heightened risk of developing a cancer associated thrombosis (CAT) event, a potentially fatal complication in which the pro-coagulation properties in cancer cells along with anti-cancer treatments contribute to the development of blood clots. “Most quality-of-life assessments used today do not measure patients’ ability to maintain normal daily activities during treatment, rather they focus on rigid health-related criteria,” explained Belong.Life Medical Director and Co-author of the study, Dr. Daniel Vorobiof, "This study highlights for pharmaceutical companies, medical researchers and clinical investigators the importance of including real-life quality of life assessments as additional endpoints in clinical trials.”

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Jun 12,2023

Veracyte Announces Afirma-Focused Abstracts to Be Presented at ENDO 2023

Veracyte, Inc. today announced that three abstracts highlighting new data on the company’s Afirma test and capabilities will be presented at ENDO 2023, the annual meeting of The Endocrine Society, which is taking place June 15-18 in Chicago, Ill. Additionally, Veracyte’s medical director of Endocrinology, Joshua Klopper, M.D., will participate in a symposium panel discussion on the advantages of various molecular testing approaches to help personalize and improve care for people with potentially cancerous thyroid nodules. In addition to the new data that will be shared during these presentations, Dr. Klopper will provide his perspective on the role and advantages of Afirma molecular testing during the above-mentioned symposium taking place June 17 from 8:40-9:30 a.m. CT in McCormick Place Room W-181.

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Mar 07,2023

Rocket VR Health and Massachusetts General Hospital Announce Initiation of Randomized Control Trial Investigating Efficacy of Virtual Reality Digital Therapeutic

Virtual reality digital therapeutics company Rocket VR Health (RVH) has launched a randomized control trial with Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). The 80-patient study will evaluate the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of RVH's virtual reality digital therapeutic in adult patients with blood cancers admitted for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation at MGH. The study aims to improve the quality of life, symptom burden, psychological distress and self-efficacy of patients who experience immense physical and psychological symptoms during a prolonged four-week hospitalization. RVH and MGH partnered in early 2021 to develop the evidence-based VR solution, which leverages lessons learned from evidence-based palliative care interventions for patients undergoing HCT that were studied for years by the MGH team. The comprehensive 4-week therapeutic intervention combines interactive therapeutic experiences, high-definition doctor holograms, and meditations. The study will guide RVH towards validating the efficacy of its digital therapeutic and help build a go-to distress management solution for hospitalized patients.

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#r&d

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May 04,2022

Sidekick’s Feasibility Study Shows Encouraging Results for Breast Cancer Patients

Digital interventions can effectively improve pain, fatigue, stress and overall health-related quality of life. The study was a four-week, single-arm feasibility trial. Eighteen female participants with breast cancer were recruited from The Light (Ljósið), a cancer rehabilitation clinic in Iceland. Participants had a mean age of 50 years and were overweight or obese with a mean BMI of 30, and all had ongoing cancer treatment involving either radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or both. Participants were asked to register in the app, and had a number of interventional tools available to use including: Food logging, Activity tracking and step count, Surveys, Receiving educational content on mindfulness, sleep, stress management, and nutrition. Overall, all but one participant was engaged in the app every week, with 67% of the participants being ‘highly’ engaged which means that they interacted with the app at least five days a week. The largest improvement in symptoms was observed in pain scores, which decreased for over 50% of participants (non-significant). 

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May 04,2022

Sidekick’s Feasibility Study Shows Encouraging Results for Breast Cancer Patients

Digital interventions can effectively improve pain, fatigue, stress and overall health-related quality of life. The study was a four-week, single-arm feasibility trial. Eighteen female participants with breast cancer were recruited from The Light (Ljósið), a cancer rehabilitation clinic in Iceland. Participants had a mean age of 50 years and were overweight or obese with a mean BMI of 30, and all had ongoing cancer treatment involving either radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or both. Participants were asked to register in the app, and had a number of interventional tools available to use including: Food logging, Activity tracking and step count, Surveys, Receiving educational content on mindfulness, sleep, stress management, and nutrition. Overall, all but one participant was engaged in the app every week, with 67% of the participants being ‘highly’ engaged which means that they interacted with the app at least five days a week. The largest improvement in symptoms was observed in pain scores, which decreased for over 50% of participants (non-significant). 

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#dtx

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Oct 13,2022

Evaluating the Feasibility of a Digital Therapeutic Program for Patients With Cancer During Active Treatment: Pre-Post Interventional Study

Increasing evidence shows that lifestyle interventions can improve the symptoms, quality of life (QoL), and even overall survival of patients with cancer. Digital therapeutics (DTx) can help implement behavioral modifications and empower patients through education, lifestyle support, and remote symptom monitoring. The study aimed to test the feasibility of a DTx program from Sidekick Health for patients with cancer, as measured by engagement, retention, and acceptability, in a 4-week single-arm trial in Iceland, where DTx was delivered through a smartphone app. The high retention, engagement, and acceptability found in this study demonstrate that multidisciplinary DTx is feasible for patients with cancer. A longer, full-scale randomized controlled trial is currently being planned to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention.

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#mobile app

#coaching

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Oct 13,2022

Evaluating the Feasibility of a Digital Therapeutic Program for Patients With Cancer During Active Treatment: Pre-Post Interventional Study

Increasing evidence shows that lifestyle interventions can improve the symptoms, quality of life (QoL), and even overall survival of patients with cancer. Digital therapeutics (DTx) can help implement behavioral modifications and empower patients through education, lifestyle support, and remote symptom monitoring. The study aimed to test the feasibility of a DTx program from Sidekick Health for patients with cancer, as measured by engagement, retention, and acceptability, in a 4-week single-arm trial in Iceland, where DTx was delivered through a smartphone app. The high retention, engagement, and acceptability found in this study demonstrate that multidisciplinary DTx is feasible for patients with cancer. A longer, full-scale randomized controlled trial is currently being planned to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention.

CLINICAL STUDY

#dtx

#mobile app

#coaching

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Jun 08,2023

COTA-Powered Research will be Presented at the Annual Congress of the European Hematology Association

The fruits of COTA’s expanded research and consulting services — Real-World Insights and Real-World Support — will be on display at the annual Congress of the European Hematology Association (EHA) being held in Frankfurt and online June 8-11. DLBCL is the most common subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Standard of care for frontline therapy remains chemoimmunotherapy; however, nearly half of the patients will experience relapse or refractory (R/R) disease. A research team from COTA and Merck Sharp & Dohme, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., analyzed RWD from 1347 eligible patients, the majority of whom (81.3%) received treatment in the community practice setting. The study concludes that there is a significant need for improved therapy options for patients who do not respond to the current initial standard of care.

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#rwe

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Jun 09,2023

Novartis unveils results from global patient and physician survey disrupting the notion that CML is a solved disease

Novartis today announced results from its CML SUN at the 2023 European Hematology Association (EHA) Hybrid Congress. Across 11 countries, similar themes emerged from the data around treatment goals, joint decision-making, and treatment satisfaction. Specifically: In their goals for treatment, patients focus on stopping or slowing disease progression, maintaining/improving QoL, and minimizing/managing side effects, while physicians place greater emphasis on treatment efficacy. Only 19% to 26% of patients state that treatment decisions are discussed and decided together with their physician, while 44% to 48% of physicians report making treatment decisions with little to no input from the patient across lines of therapy. These results are based on data from Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, UK, and USA. Final analyses of the data are expected to be published later in the year.

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Jun 08,2023 TOP STORY

Owkin launches PortrAIt, in collaboration with Gustave Roussy

The PortrAIt Consortium, which brings together different public and specialized private AI and oncology operators, aims to turn France into a global leader in the use of AI to diagnose and treat diseases. Created in July 2022, the project was officially unveiled in late March 2023. Over the next five years, PortrAIt aims to create at least 15 AI tools for digital pathology, which may speed up pathologists’ work, detect the presence of certain biomarkers, and predict patient outcomes. PortrAIt will be broken down in two phases. Initially, a platform, PortrAIt Lab, will be created as early as July 2023. “Pathologists will have a role to play in developing diagnostic tools by annotating slides, for example, to train AI models,” said Etienne Hatton, Consortium project manager. Then, a second distribution platform will function a bit like a market place. This platform will be managed by Tribun Health and Owkin, and will act as a reliable resource for all operators involved in the sector, with the aim of creating a digital pathology channel.

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