Post OVAC Lobby Day thoughts

This year was the fourth One Voice Against Cancer (OVAC) Lobby Day in which I participated. This was the best one and I’ve had some good ones.

Continue reading…

Posted by Dusty Weaver on April 30th, 2006
Posted in: Policy & Advocacy News | 1 Comment »

Medicare Part D coverage for individuals must remain stable during the plan year

Insurance plans under Medicare Part D must continue to cover those plan participants who are already taking a particular drug even if the drug is removed from their formulary according to a policy announced on April  26, 2006 by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.  

If insurance plans change the drugs covered in their formularies, co-pays, or other restrictions plan members already taking those drugs must be exempt from the new rules for the remainder of the plan year.

There are some limited exceptions to the policy including

• Drugs that are shown in new research to be unsafe for some patients.
• When a new, lower-cost generic form of the drug becomes available during the plan year.

At the end of a plan year, individuals have the opportunity to review their coverage and enroll in a different plan if they choose.

Medicare Part D insurance must cover all prescribed cancer drugs (those not given in the hospital or doctor’s office) but insurance plans can limit drugs covered in other categories, as long as they provide coverage with some comparable medications within the category.

Other coverage of the CMS policy change can be found at Kaiser Family Foundation Kaiser Network.

Posted by Kate Murphy on April 27th, 2006
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »

Intergel use in colorectal surgery leads to complications and is not recommended

Adhesions are a significant consequence of abdominal surgery, including surgery to treat colorectal cancer.  Intergel (ferric hyaluronate gel) has been used successfully in gynecologic surgery to prevent adhesions, but its use in colon resection wasn’t well understood.

Researchers randomized patients who were about to undergo colon resection to having Interget placed in the abdominal cavity during the operation or not having the treatment.  Initially their goal was to enroll 200 patients, but the study was halted after 32 patients because of the high number of complications in the Intergel group.

65% of the treatment group experienced a surgical complication compared to 27% of the controls.  Five patients in the Intergel group had leaks where the colon was reconnected (anastomosis) compared to one control.  Ten Intergel patients had prolonged time to recovery of bowel function (ileus) compared to 2 in the control group.  There was 1 case of peritonitis.  Wound healing problems were also common in the Intergel group but the difference was not significant.

The study, published in the April 2006 issue of Annals of Surgery concluded:

The use of Intergel in abdominal surgery where the gastrointestinal tract is opened leads to unacceptably high rates of postoperative complications.

adhesions colon resection Intergel

Posted by Kate Murphy on April 24th, 2006
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »

Younger colorectal cancer patients at higher risk for a second colorectal cancer

Some people who have been successfully treated for one colorectal cancer will be diagnosed with a new primary colorectal tumor later on — a metachronous tumor. Follow-up with colonoscopy can identify these cancers early so they can be treated.  However, it isn’t clear who might be at greatest risk for metachronous cancer.

Korean scientists reviewed over 5,400 cases of colorectal cancer treated at the Asan Medical Centre in Seoul between 1989 and 2004.  Overall there were 39 metachronous colorectal cancers (0.7%) in that time.  The new cancers were diagnosed from 6 months to nearly 18 years after treatment for the initial colorectal cancer with a third found more than 5 years later.

Patients with metachronous cancers were more likely to have had initial diagnosis:

• at an earlier age.  Average age for the first cancer was 53.
• in the right colon.
• with cancers or polyps in other locations in the colon at the same time (synchronous tumors).

Writing in the May 2006 issue of Colorectal Disease  I.J. Park and colleagues concluded,

We found that in patients aged < 50 years, existence of synchronous polyps or cancer influence on the development of metachronous colorectal cancer. Regular follow-up is necessary for early detection, even after 5 years, for these patients.

metachronous colorectal cancer

Posted by Kate Murphy on April 23rd, 2006
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »

What you can do from home to support those on The Hill

On Wednesday, April 26 C3 advocates will join with those of several other cancer-related organizations and visti the Washington, D.C. offices of Senators and Representatives as a part of One Voice Against Cancer (OVAC) Lobby Day. The message they will deliver to Congress is our nation must get back on the path towards eliminating cancer death and suffering by 2015.

In order to get on the path and stay on it C3 joins its OVAC colleagues in urgeing Congress to do the following:

Invest in Cancer Research: Fund the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at $5.34 billion and the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities at $200 million.

Invest in Cancer Prevention and Control Programs: Fund the cancer and prevntion and control programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at $427.5 million.

Address the National Nursing Shortage: Fund the nursing programs at the Health Reaources and Services Administration (HRSA) for Fiscal Year 2007 at $175 million. 

Not going to Washington? You can still help by calling your Senators and Representative on Wednesday, April 26. When they receive phone calls the same day as the visit they will see this needs their attention.

 Here is how you do it:

Go to the C3 One Minute Advocate page. Look on the right side of the page for the item "Find Elected Officials." Enter your Zip Code and click "Go."

You should be on a page called "Elected Federal Officials" where your two U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative are listed. Click on "View Info" which is located below the offical’s photo.

This page contains the contact information for the elected official. Call the phone number and ask to speak with the legslative assistant in charge of health issues. Tell the person you urge the Senator or Representative to vote for the funding levels meantioned above. Ask if the official will do so. Leave your name and address so the office can contact you with a reply.

You may not speak with the legislative assistant for a varity of reasons. If that is the case you can leave a message for that person with the informaton you would have said directly to him or her.

You can also fax or email the office with the same information should you prefer this method.

Should you not hear from the office in a couple of weeks call again and ask the status of your request.

Let us know about your efforts by emailing C3.

You can make a difference. 

Posted by Dusty Weaver on April 22nd, 2006
Posted in: Policy & Advocacy News | No Comments »