Publications by authors named "Boxiong Tang"

Objectives: This study aimed to provide evidence on the epidemiology, real-world treatment patterns, overall survival, and economic burden of Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of an anonymized large German claims database from January 1, 2010, to June 30, 2022, identified incident WM cases based on a 12-month diagnosis-free period before the first confirmed WM diagnosis (ICD-10-GM code C88.0).

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Background: The EORTC QLQ-OES18 has previously demonstrated clinical validity; however, there are limited published psychometric data for patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We evaluated the measurement properties of the QLQ-OES18 in a clinical trial population of patients with advanced or metastatic ESCC.

Methodology: Analyses used data from RATIONALE 302 (NCT03430843), a randomized phase 3 study of tislelizumab versus investigator-chosen chemotherapy as second-line treatment for patients with advanced or metastatic ESCC.

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Article Synopsis
  • Gastroesophageal junction carcinoma (GEJC) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cases are on the rise in Australia, prompting a study on their trends and future predictions using Australian cancer data from 2009 to 2018.
  • The analysis showed that GEJC incidents increased significantly, particularly among men, while the rates for women showed a slight decline; ESCC cases also increased but at a slower rate.
  • The study predicts that by 2039, approximately 6 in 100,000 will be diagnosed with GEJC and 2 in 100,000 with ESCC, both having low 10-year survival rates, although women showed relatively better survival rates than men.
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  • The ASPEN study is a Phase III clinical trial that compares the effectiveness of two drugs, zanubrutinib and ibrutinib, in treating patients with Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM).
  • A total of 201 patients participated, with 102 receiving zanubrutinib and 99 receiving ibrutinib, and the outcomes were evaluated using patient-reported questionnaires.
  • Results indicated that zanubrutinib led to better improvements in health-related quality of life, particularly regarding symptoms like diarrhea and nausea/vomiting, as well as overall physical functioning and fatigue in patients who achieved a very good partial response to treatment.
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This real-world retrospective cohort study using Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) 10% investigated changes in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) treatment by line of therapy, time-to-next-treatment, treatment duration, and overall survival (OS). Overall, 803 patients received their first PBS-reimbursed CLL medication between 1 January 2011 to 31 July 2021 (median age: 70 years; 64.6% male), 289 post-1 August 2020.

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Background: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of leukemia. However, published studies of CLL have either only focused on costs among individuals diagnosed with CLL without a non-CLL comparator group or focused on costs associated with specific CLL treatments. An examination of utilization and costs across different care settings provides a holistic view of utilization associated with CLL.

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  • - This study assessed health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer who were part of the RATIONALE-309 trial, comparing those receiving tislelizumab with chemotherapy to those getting placebo with chemotherapy.
  • - A total of 263 patients were randomized, with 43% having liver metastases; the study found no significant differences in HRQoL scores at certain points, though notable pain score improvements were seen in the tislelizumab group by cycle 8.
  • - Overall, the results suggest that combining tislelizumab with chemotherapy may be a promising first-line treatment option for this type of cancer due to better survival, improved quality of life,
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This study characterizes the patterns and timing of CLL treatment and, to our knowledge, is the first to identify social vulnerability factors associated with CLL treatment receipt in the Medicare population. A total of 3508 Medicare beneficiaries diagnosed with CLL from 2017 to 2019 were identified. We reported the proportion of individuals who received CLL treatment and the time until the first CLL treatment receipt after the first observed claim with a CLL diagnosis.

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  • The study compared the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer receiving either tislelizumab or docetaxel in a Phase 3 trial called RATIONALE-303.
  • Results showed that patients on tislelizumab experienced significant improvements in overall quality of life, fatigue, and specific lung cancer symptoms compared to those on docetaxel.
  • Tislelizumab was associated with a lower risk of worsening symptoms like coughing and dyspnea, indicating that it may be a more effective treatment option for patients who have not benefited from previous platinum-based chemotherapy.
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Introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common complication in cancer patients, and the increased risk associated with certain therapies poses a major challenge. The objective was to determine the clinical and economic burden of AF in onco-hematological patients in Europe.

Areas Covered: A targeted literature review was completed for observational, retrospective and case studies, and reviews on AF in onco-hematology published between January 2010 and 2022 in PubMed, Science Direct, Medes and IBECS.

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Ibrutinib, a Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is often used as first-line (1L) treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL); however, it is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular adverse events (CVAEs). This real-world study adds to existing literature by simultaneously investigating the correlation between pre-existing CV risk factors and the relative cardiotoxicity of ibrutinib vs other therapies in CLL/small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL). Using a real-world database, the risk of subsequent CVAEs (any CVAE, atrial fibrillation [AF], or hypertension) were compared among patients who received 1L ibrutinib monotherapy or another type of non-ibrutinib therapy, grouped as intensive (IT) or non-intensive therapy (NIT).

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  • Immune checkpoint inhibitors (PD[L]1i) have improved first-line treatment options for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) since their introduction, showing notable clinical benefits.
  • In a study analyzing treatment trends from 2017 to 2020, the majority of patients were treated with chemotherapy alone (47%), while PD(L)1i combined with chemotherapy saw a more than doubled use, constituting 25% of treatments.
  • Despite consistent use of PD(L)1i monotherapy and targeted therapy, over one-third of patients still received only chemotherapy in 2019 and 2020, with older adults, females, and those with certain health conditions being less likely to receive combined therapies.
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Among patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with deletion 17p (del[17p]), evidence from clinical trials for the effectiveness of single-agent ibrutinib as first-line therapy is limited. This retrospective analysis compared real-world clinical outcomes among patients with CLL, with and without del(17p), treated with first-line ibrutinib monotherapy. Overall survival, time to next treatment, time to treatment discontinuation, and reasons for ibrutinib discontinuation were evaluated.

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  • This study evaluated the impact of tislelizumab, a PD-1 inhibitor, combined with chemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (nSQ-NSCLC).
  • In a multicenter phase III trial, 332 patients were randomized to receive either tislelizumab plus platinum-pemetrexed or platinum-pemetrexed alone, with HRQoL assessed at baseline and specific weeks using validated questionnaires.
  • Results showed that patients receiving the combination therapy had a significant improvement in their global health status/QoL and experienced fewer symptoms like coughing and chest pain, indicating better HRQoL compared to those receiving chemotherapy alone
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  • The study evaluated the EORTC QLQ-HCC18 questionnaire to measure quality of life in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma during a clinical trial involving the drug tislelizumab.
  • Various psychometric properties were analyzed, including reliability, validity, and the ability to detect meaningful changes in patients' health over time.
  • Results showed strong internal consistency and reliability for certain domains, with effective differentiation in quality of life changes related to fatigue and body image, indicating the questionnaire's effectiveness in measuring patient experiences.
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  • Bisphosphonates are a key treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis, but many women struggle with sticking to the therapy, which reduces its effectiveness and increases fracture risk.
  • A review of studies from 23 countries revealed that only 40%-85% of women adhered to medication guidelines, with persistence rates between 28% to 74%, often improving with less frequent dosing.
  • The findings underscore the importance of better support and strategies to improve adherence, as women who followed the treatment more closely had significantly lower fracture rates.
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  • The study aimed to assess the preferences of patients and nurses regarding self-injection devices for fertility treatments using recombinant human follicle-stimulating hormone across several European countries.
  • Surveyed participants included 402 patients and 40 reproductive nurses from various countries, who provided insights through an online questionnaire using advanced analytical methods.
  • Findings revealed that both patients and nurses preferred a reusable, user-friendly injection device that minimizes pain and is easy to teach, highlighting similarities in their priorities despite some differences in focus.
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Background: Granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSFs) are often administered to reduce the incidence, severity, and duration of febrile neutropenia (FN) in chemotherapy patients. Tbo-filgrastim and filgrastim-sndz represent a follow-on biologic and a biosimilar version, respectively, of the short-acting G-CSF filgrastim with comparable efficacy and safety.

Objective: To estimate the budget impact of increasing use of patient-(home-) administered tbo-filgrastim and filgrastim-sndz from a U.

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  • A study using data from the 2013 National Health and Wellness Survey compared the experiences of women using extended-cycle combined oral contraception (COC) with those using monthly-cycle COC, focusing on factors such as treatment satisfaction and menstrual symptoms.
  • Women on extended-cycle COC reported higher treatment satisfaction and adherence, as well as less heavy menstrual bleeding, but also experienced more health issues and related symptoms like fatigue and headaches.
  • Overall, the findings suggest that while extended-cycle COC may offer benefits like reduced menstrual symptoms, it is often prescribed to women with pre-existing health problems.
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Background Granulocyte colony-stimulating factors are effective at reducing the risk and duration of neutropenia. The current meta-analysis compared the neutropenia-related efficacy and safety of lipegfilgrastim to those of pegfilgrastim and filgrastim. Methods Embase was searched for trials examining the efficacy/safety of lipegfilgrastim, pegfilgrastim, or filgrastim.

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  • Long-acting reversible contraceptives like IUDs have become more popular and are highly effective at preventing pregnancy, but there's uncertainty about their impact on tubal sterilization rates.
  • A study analyzed claims data from 2006 to 2011, revealing an increase in IUD insertions (both copper and LNG) and a decrease in sterilizations among women aged 15 to 45.
  • The findings indicate that women are increasingly choosing reversible contraception options, with some observed side effects, over permanent sterilization methods.
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Differences in healthcare utilization and costs were examined in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients experiencing first-, second- and third-line tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy. Three CML cohorts were identified from the Truven Health MarketScan® database: No-Switch Cohort (NSc) = did not switch from first-line; One-Switch Cohort (OSc) = switched from first- to second-line only; Two-Switch Cohort (TSc) = switched to second- and then third-line. A total of 3510 patients were identified (mean = 54%; age = 55.

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Introduction: This study estimated the cost-effectiveness of arsenic trioxide (ATO) added to all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) when used in first-line acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) treatment.

Materials And Methods: A Markov cohort model was developed with 3 states: stable disease (during first- or second-line treatment), disease event, and death. Newly diagnosed patients with low- to intermediate-risk APL were included and each month could remain in their current health state or move to another.

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