Solutions Are Necessary to Increase Real-World Prostate Cancer Drug Use

Collaboration and advocacy at the “highest level” are necessary for supporting the employment of evidence-based treatments for prostate cancer that currently see sparse use in real-world settings, according to Neeraj Agarwal, MD.

In an interview with CancerNetwork^®, Agarwal indicated that efforts must focus on managing copay issues to improve access to these agents, as well as educating patients and providers on the newest treatments, technology, and data to improve prostate cancer care. Additionally, he suggested that artificial intelligence (AI)–based algorithms deriving data from electronic medical records must be accurate to ensure that patients are getting matched to the most suitable therapies.

Agarwal is a professor of medicine, presidential endowed chair of cancer research, and director of both the Genitourinary Oncology (GU) Program and the Center of Investigational Therapeutics at the Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) of the University of Utah.

Transcript:

It is great to see these phase 3 trials leading to approval of new drugs and combinations for our patients. But it is also very demoralizing to see these drugs, which are backed by level 1 evidence, not being utilized in the real world.

How do we tackle this lack of use of evidence-based therapy in our patients in the clinic and the real world? Several parties have to come together to solve this problem for our patients. It will require advocacy at the highest level to allow better access to our patients, to better handle copay issues, and to improve knowledge among patients and the providers as far as newer drugs, newer technology, and newer data are concerned.

How do we make sure that when we are prescribing a treatment for our patients who have newly diagnosed metastatic prostate cancer, the AI-based tools embedded in any electronic medical record will show the most appropriate treatment for that patient? The solution will encompass [addressing] a variety of measures, including financial constraints, lack of education, busy clinicians in the clinic, and so on. That is one of the most important issues in my mind.