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Impact of Health Insurance on Mortality for Children and AYAs Newly Diagnosed with a Blood Cancer: A Population-Based Multistate Evaluation
Lacking continuous insurance is a key barrier to access to timely care. This study will provide the first evidence of whether insurance continuity provides a survival benefit, and how Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act affects insurance continuity and the associated downstream changes in survival for children, adolescents, and young adults with blood cancers. This study will inform policy interventions toward increasing access and reducing disparities in blood cancer outcomes.Against All Odds, Eevie Turns 1!
A first birthday is always a big occasion, but for Eevie, it's taken on a whole new meaning. She was born with a rare leukemia that gives her a 17 percent chance of surviving to age 2. Even her parents weren't sure she would make it this far. "We didn't think she would still be here. The odds were never in her favor," said her mom, Brynne. Eevie was born with congenital acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), an extremely rare condition affecting 1 in 5 million newborns.
Young Advocate, Big Goals: Charlotte’s Story
Imagine going to the doctor for a cold only to learn you actually have leukemia. That’s how Charlotte's experience with blood cancer began in 2018.
“The doctor diagnosed it as strep throat,” Charlotte remembers. When the antibiotics didn’t work, she “went to another doctor who diagnosed it as something else.”
Hydroxyurea
Hydroxyurea is FDA approved to treat people who have chronic myelocytic leukemia and some other blood cancers, including essential thrombocythemia and polycythemia vera. Hydroxyurea may cause temporary loss of hair in some people. After treatment has ended, normal hair growth should return, although the new hair may be a slightly different color or texture.
Filgrastim-sndz
Filgrastim-sndz is FDA approved as a biosimilar to US-licensed Neupogen® for the five indications for which Neupogen is approved:
- Patients with cancer receiving myelosuppressive chemotherapy;
- Patients with acute myeloid leukemia receiving induction or consolidation chemotherapy;
- Patients with cancer undergoing bone marrow transplantation;
- Patients undergoing autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell collection and therapy; and
- Patients with severe chronic neutropenia.
Palifermin
Palifermin is FDA approved to help prevent or lessen severe oral mucositis (inflammation of the mucous membrane of the mouth) in patients receiving certain types of blood cancer therapy.
Immunotherapies on a Roll at #ASH20
More than three years after the first chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy achieved U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, the revolutionary approach that has upended blood cancer treatment continues to generate excitement.
Beat AML in the Time of COVID-19: A Powerful New Video
Like many clinical trials across the U.S. and the globe, The Leukemia & Lymphoma’s Beat AML Master Trial has been dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and has had to make adjustments to continue to provide critical treatment to patients who were previously enrolled.
A Groundbreaking Trial
A New Meaning to Mother's Day
By Sarah
Zoledronic acid
Zoledronic acid is FDA approved to treat hypercalcemia (high levels of blood calcium) that may occur in patients with some types of cancer, including myeloma. It is also FDA approved along with chemotherapy to treat bone damage caused by myeloma or by cancer that began in another part of the body but has spread to the bones.
The Bright Light (Actually Two!) at the End of the Tunnel
I was 28, married for two years, and my husband and I had just celebrated our one-year anniversary at my business, Gigi’s Cupcakes. We were happy and healthy and ready to start thinking about having a family. Life was perfect!
Healing Happens Around The Dinner Table
Too many parents lose their children to blood cancer each year. It’s a devastating experience for families blindsided by the harsh realities of cancer treatment that wasn’t developed with their little ones in mind. These lives lost too soon are the reason parents of children touched by blood cancer advocate fervently for change. And it’s a cause their communities and loved ones are more than happy to join—developing better treatment options that are safer and more effective for children, causing fewer side effects and leading to better outcomes.
Defining PIK3R5-related PI3K gamma dependency as a novel therapeutic target in blood cancers including BPDCN
Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN) is an aggressive blood cancer without adequate treatment. In a genome-wide CRISPR interference screen, BPDCN was highly dependent on the PI3Kγ pathway and specifically the PIK3R5 adaptor subunit. A subset of leukemias may share this vulnerability. We will interrogate the mechanism of this unique dependency and integrate PIK3R5/PI3Kγ targeting with leukemia therapy. Our goal is to provide novel treatments for PIK3R5-dependent malignancies.Can We Start Using The Word “Cure?” #ASH17
Today at the #ASH17 (American Society of Hematology) conference in Atlanta, researchers presented the latest compelling data from thousands of clinical trials, revealing how experimental therapies, or approved therapies being tested in new ways, have worked in treating blood cancer patients. Among the presentations were several hundred projects across a spectrum of diseases that benefited in some way from support from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).
“I Don’t Have Money but I Have Time”
Three or four days a week for the past five years, Dorothy Spriggs has been showing up for work at The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Maryland chapter. However, instead of a paycheck, she is earning the satisfaction of knowing she is doing her part to give back and helping others with blood cancer.
At age 73, the Baltimore woman known as “Ms. Dotti” has no plans to stop. She’s enjoying it way too much.
“It’s the joy of being able to give back in a small way,” she said. “When I look at what the staff do, it amazes me. What I do is kind of small compared to them.”
Cleaning Tips to Help Keep You and Your Loved Ones Safe
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is here to help. We’ve put together guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other tips to help caregivers and families keep their homes clean and healthy.
Filgrastim
Filgrastim is FDA approved to
How Celebrating My 18th Birthday in the Hospital Changed My Perspective
Marlee’s story of courage, inspiration and giving back.
My name is Marlee Pincus and I have cancer. I never in a million years thought I would say those words. Growing up, I never had any medical issues nor a significant family history of cancer. In high school I loved to run, advocate for human rights, and learn Spanish. However, my greatest focus was always on my academics. I graduated Salutatorian of my class and was eager to begin my freshman year at Cornell University.
CAR-T Pioneer Dr. Carl June Elected to the U.S. National Academy of Science
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) congratulates Carl June, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania, whose groundbreaking research ushered in a new era in cancer immunotherapy, for his election into the U.S. National Academy of Science (U.S. NAS). Dr. June earned this prestigious honor through recognition by his peers for his “distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.”
Another Advance for AML
The steady pace of progress in treating patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), still one of the most deadly blood cancers, continued with today’s U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s second approval of a drug called ivosidenib (Tibsovo) that works for patients with a specific subtype of AML.
Impact of State Health Insurance Mandates on Affordability and Utilization of Fertility Preservation in Adolescent and Young Adults with Blood Cancers
Fertility preservation (FP) treatments can prevent infertility caused by blood cancer. However, FP costs are high, and these services are typically not covered by insurance, contributing to low utilization. New state laws require insurers to cover FP, but it is unknown if they improve access to care. Using national insurance data, this study will examine how much out-of-pocket costs remain, whether patients’ share of costs is like that of other cancer services, and whether and which types of laws increase use and affordability.21st Century Cures Act Victory
As Vice President of LLS’s Office of Public Policy, Bernadette O’Donoghue leads strategic public policy development at the federal and state levels, providing input from patients to help improve access to care and accelerate cures.
This week was a monumental victory for cancer patients. The 21st Century Cures Act, which will significantly speed access to new lifesaving therapies, was signed into a law. Now, cancer patients, survivors and their families are closer to improved diagnostics, treatments, and ultimately, cures.