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CHICAGO-As the health care system in this country shifts from fee for service to managed care, private and public payers are being forced to make decisions about the oncology services they purchase. As payers struggle to define the scope of their coverage of oncology services, however, they may be ignoring the aspects of care that are most important to patients, speakers said at a conference on purchasing oncology services, sponsored by the American Cancer Society.

TORONTO-Cancer patients with febrile neutropenia have routinely been hospitalized and treated with intravenous antibiotics. A pilot study presented at the 37th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) suggests that low-risk patients can be treated just as well at home.

BROOKVILLE, NY-“Most of us wait until it’s too late to make decisions on end-of-life care,” Robert C. Cassidy, PhD, said at a conference on that subject. “But somewhere out there is an abyss, and we better start knitting a parachute before we get pushed out of the plane.”

The treatment of childhood cancer is a major success story. Twenty-five years ago, only 10% of children with leukemia

In 1995, tobacco use contributed to the deaths of 6,274 persons in Oregon (1995 population, 3,132,000) as reported by

Provisional surveillance data about acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) for the first 6 months of 1996 indicated a

HAMBURG-More than 6,000 cancer researchers, clinical oncologists, and specialist cancer nurses from all over the world attended the Ninth European Cancer Conference (ECCO 9), considered Europe’s foremost multidisciplinary oncology event. (See reports on pages 1, 2, 3, 8, 13, 15, 24, 27, and 40.)

WASHINGTON-The House and Senate have each passed bills revising the process by which the Food and Drug Administration approves new drugs and medical devices. But what happens in the conference committee that resolves a significant difference between the two measures may well decide whether President Clinton signs or vetoes the final bill.

n PRINCETON, NJ-A single dose of Quadramet (Samarium Sm 153 Lexidronam injection) significantly relieved bone pain in patients with metastatic breast, prostate, and other primary cancers in a dose-dependent manner, a multicenter European study has shown.

CHICAGO-“Is the private practice oncologist at risk? I think we are,” said Bruce Feinberg, DO, at the first national conference on purchasing oncology services, sponsored by the American Cancer Society and the Kerr L. White Institute for Health Services Research, Decatur, Ga.

CHICAGO-When the US Supreme Court decided recently that patients have no inherent right to physician-assisted suicide, it neglected to help physicians decide how to respond to those “exceptional cases involving real patients with real suffering,” said Timothy E. Quill, MD, at the American Academy of Family Physicians annual meeting.

Current and former smokers may not be not so different after all. Although the appearance of lung tissue in smokers returns to

CHICAGO-The purchasers that make critical health care decisions for approximately 75% of the American population who have insurance readily acknowledge they have little understanding of the cost of oncology care or the types of services that cancer patients need.

BARCELONA, Spain-Intrathecal administration of the selective neuronal channel blocker SNX-111 via an external pump proved safe and feasible in 11 patients with chronic intractable pain. More than half of the group saw an improvement in pain control, William Brose, MD, reported at a meeting of the International Association for the Study of Pain.

SAN DIEGO-Just as a glacier may advance and retreat simultaneously, managed oncology care appears to be experiencing both integration and disintegration, said James L. Wade III, MD, president of the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC).

PITTSBURGH-A special microscope capable of “seeing” some 40 different wavelengths of the visible color spectrum is being used to add dramatic new colors to stained tissues, which may enhance the pathologist’s ability to detect malignancies.

With a few clicks of a computer mouse, scientists now can access a free on-line index that will soon show tens of thousands of

Olive Garden Italian Restaurants recently reached their goal of raising $2 million through its “Pasta for Pennies” program to

Cancer outcome is improving by 1% each year, which adds up to very substantial progress over 5 years, says Professor

BALTIMORE-The $368.5 billion settlement worked out between 40 state attorneys general and the tobacco industry now faces the lengthy congressional process. Congress must enact and the President must sign into law a number of provisions to finalize the agreement.

Presenting the nursing perspective on cancer, Ms. Nora Jodrell, Macmillan Lecturer in Cancer Nursing and President Elect of

SAN DIEGO-Many oncologists attending a session on capitation at the Association of Community Cancer Centers’ 14th National Oncology Economics Conference may have hoped the speaker would reveal the “ideal rate” to charge for capitated oncology care, but, unfortunately, “there is no such thing,” Philip L. Beard told the gathering.

PHILADELPHIA-“Litigation is killing the Pap test. You have to allow patients to sue, but suing because the test is imperfect, we can’t allow,” Richard M. DeMay, MD, told Oncology News International. The solution, he believes, is “some sort of legislation.”

PHILADELPHIA-The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is seeking applications for its sixth annual Gertrude B. Elion Cancer Research Award, as well as Research Fellowships for young scientists.

PHILADELPHIA-The FDA has approved testing for HPV (human papillomavirus) directly from Cytyc’s ThinPrep Pap Test collection vial. HPV testing is performed using Digene Corporation’s Hybrid Capture HPV DNA Assay, the only HPV test currently approved for marketing by the FDA.

TORONTO-Potent new anti-HIV three-drug “cocktails” are far more likely to fail in the real world of primary care than in carefully controlled clinical trials, researchers reported at the American Society for Microbiology’s 37th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC). However, it appears that such failures are much less likely if patients are started on the three agents concurrently rather than sequentially.

NEW YORK-The North American Brain Tumor Coalition (NABTC) kicked off the first Brain Tumor Awareness Week, October 19 to 25, 1997. The national event is designed to educate the public about the impact of brain tumors, as well as highlight the need for increased research funding.

BETHESDA, Md-A major re-evaluation of the nation’s cancer surveillance system is in the offing. National Cancer Institute director Richard D. Klausner, MD, told the President’s Cancer Panel that he has asked for such a review by NCI staff, working with other relevant agencies such as the National Center for Health Statistics.

ATLANTA-Gazing up at a canopy of red fall foliage or a placid blue lake, the cancer patient is able to relax and momentarily forget the large radiation machine looming over her. She remains still and calm for her radiation treatment, and leaves the facility in good spirits. This is the goal of “visual therapy,” the use of nature photography throughout treatment centers but especially in high-stress areas such as radiation oncology.

HAMBURG-Pathologists may soon be able to obtain expert second opinions on specimens through microscope teleconferencing on the Internet, thanks to an oncologic pathology network now under development by a consortium of European Union pathologists and companies. In addition to allowing long-distance consultations, the EURO-PATH project-European Pathology Assisted by Telematics for Health-will provide pathologists with access to a multimedia European database.