Mike Hennessy

Articles

Rolling Out Technology

February 18th 2017

It is always a balancing act to describe the introduction of new technology in the medical field. We seek to juggle enthusiasm for the potential of an exciting new platform with the complexities of the long road ahead that adopting new technology usually bring.

Genitourinary Cancer Field Gets Off to an Eventful Start in 2017

February 15th 2017

The field of genitourinary (GU) cancers is starting to undergo some of the same changes that have been shifting treatment paradigms so dramatically in other malignancies. The most significant change can be summed up in one word: immunotherapy.

The New Administration May Speed Up the Pace of Innovation

February 5th 2017

With ambitious goals to improve outcomes and lower the cost of care, CMS has placed a lot of faith in its Oncology Care Model, an alternative payment model.

The Big Data Buzz

January 18th 2017

The power of that ability to analyze cancers over broad populations has generated much excitement in the drug development arena and it’s not hard to understand the reasons.

A Time for Hope

January 18th 2017

Although lung cancer still causes more deaths than any other type of malignancy not only in the United States but throughout the world, there’s a sense of excitement in the air these days when it comes to helping people with this disease.

Paging Dr. Watson....

January 8th 2017

Watson for Oncology is the name of the new iteration from IBM. It achieved 90% concordance with tumor boards at the Manipal Comprehensive Cancer Center in Bengaluru, India, according to results presented at the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

Thinking Big

January 5th 2017

Although it’s easy to become jaded about the prospects for positive change in any bureaucracy, we are feeling decidedly upbeat about the developments underway on the federal level concerning the cancer research behemoth.

Two Landmark Conferences Contribute to Progress in Kidney and Bladder Cancers

January 4th 2017

The tail-end of this year saw 2 annual conferences occurring at the same time: the 2016 Large Urology Group Practice Association annual meeting in Chicago, and the 15th annual International Kidney Cancer Symposium in Miami. Both are covered in this issue’s Conference Highlights section, featuring key stories and landmark research in their respective fields.

The Search for Partners

December 5th 2016

These days, no one is talking about finding such a simplistic answer for what we now understand is a set of diseases whose complexity continues to unfold. Instead, it has become the norm to think about emerging oncology paradigms in terms of combination therapies.

Humana CEO Cheers for Risk-based Models

December 5th 2016

Value-based reforms from CMS have been received like extra work at the end of a long hard day. It hasn’t helped that making the leap to patient-centered care has involved grappling with a new set of quality metrics and wringing higher levels of performance out of electronic health reporting systems.

Fighting for Success

November 20th 2016

The first and thus far only PARP inhibitor to gain regulatory approval, olaparib traveled a tortuous path to the 2014 FDA ruling that enabled its use for women with recurrent ovarian cancer.

Going for the Gold

November 20th 2016

The gold standard for patients with cancer has long been overall survival, preferably delivered up with statistical significance through a randomized, phase III clinical trial.

Mobile Screening Draws a Crowd

November 8th 2016

One group of oncologists has found a way to generate more business while at the same time addressing the unwillingness of people to come for screening.

Outfitted for Cancer Care

November 4th 2016

Technology is in the works that would allow medically useful personal health metrics to be collected by sensors that can be incorporated into clothing, accessories, or skin patches, and then transmitted electronically for analysi

On the Shoulders of Giants

November 1st 2016

During our many years in the oncology information field, we’ve continually been impressed and inspired by the talent, dedication, and caring nature of the researchers and clinicians who treat patients with this most complex set of diseases.

Brace for a Dark and Stormy 2017

October 8th 2016

Although many reform efforts are based on good intentions, these efforts are not always well respected. There is a drive afoot to terminate the charter for the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation.

Talking About Ethics

September 20th 2016

There are important ethical questions that must be fully considered when scientific research of any kind is conducted.

Data Thieves Are the Newest Form of Cancer

September 14th 2016

Tens of millions of medical profiles have been hacked from payers and oncology practices in just the past few years.

Hallmarks of a New Era

September 2nd 2016

The past 5 years have been a whirlwind of fresh developments in the field of anticancer immunotherapies, and there is certainly no doubt that we have entered a new era of oncology care.

The Future Is Calling

August 16th 2016

Even under the best of circumstances, the CRISPR gene-editing technology that we explore in this issue of OncologyLive won’t make it into clinical practice any time soon.