#LCSM Chat Topic 2/8/18: Right to Try Laws and CIMAVax

  “Right to Try” laws for people with a terminal illness have been a longstanding issue and are currently on the books in 38 states. The lack of a federal law supporting this concept was touched upon in President Trump’s State of the Union address last week. On its face, offering liberal options that permit these patients to try any still investigational agent that has completed phase I testing seems like a benefit to patients who may be desperate for options. A couple of arguments in favor of it are available here:… Read More

#LCSM Chat Topic 5/18: What’s PFS Got to Do with It?

For our chat on 5/18/17, starting at 8 PM Eastern, 5 PM Pacific, we’ll cover several key trial results and the potential implications of them.  While each has the potential to be practice changing, all three have the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) but, to our knowledge, don’t necessarily improve overall survival (OS).  It is interesting that the differences between the settings and trial designs have led many lung cancer experts to favor adoption of some of these results but not necessarily others. But what do patients and caregivers think of… Read More

#LCSM Chat Topic 4/6: Who Needs Research Anyway: How Have You Been Impacted by Lung Cancer Research?

  Our topic for the next #LCSM Chat on Thursday, April 6th at 5 PM Pacific/ 8 PM Eastern is “Who Needs Research Anyway: How Have You Been Impacted by Lung Cancer Research?” The moderator for this chat is Dr. David Tom Cooke (@DavidCookeMD) In its most recent budget outline, the Trump administration is looking to propose an 18% cut to the National Institute of Health’s (NIH; @NIH) $31.7 billion budget (#trumpbudget).  In addition to this funding cut, the Trump administration proposes to 1) reorganize the current NIH institute structure and 2)… Read More