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NCCN Oncology Summit on Comparative Effectiveness Gathers Key Stakeholders in Washington, DC

By Jessica DeMartino, PhD, NCCN Policy Fellow

The NCCN Oncology Summit: Comparative Effectiveness in Cancer Care was held on Monday, December 7, 2009 in Washington, DC, at the National Press Club.  The NCCN Oncology Summit presented the real-world views of interested constituencies on the use of existing data in comparative effectiveness analyses that will impact clinical policy, coverage policy, and health policy.  The NCCN Oncology Summit convened attendees from a broad array of organizations to discuss issues surrounding the implementation of comparative effectiveness paradigms.  Organizations in attendance included Friends of Cancer Research, National Patient Advocate Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Office of Personnel Management, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, Aetna, and Humana, among many other organizations and leading oncologists.

Of note, NCCN introduced the NCCN Comparative Therapeutic Index™ as an analytic method for near term comparative effectiveness analyses of existing data.  The NCCN Comparative Therapeutic Index was well received and was the genesis of lively and informative discussion.  A roundtable session, moderated by William T. McGivney, PhD, CEO of NCCN, continued the discussion and allowed participants to express opinions and ask questions.  The roundtable participants included Jeff M. Allen, PharmD, BCOP (Humana Pharmacy Solutions), Al B. Benson III, MD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University), Randy Burkholder (Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America), Robert W. Carlson, MD (Stanford Cancer Institute), James Cross, MD (Aetna), George Dahlman (The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society), Nancy Davenport-Ennis (National Patient Advocate Foundation), Louis Jacques, MD (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services), and Kimary Kulig, PhD, MPH (Pfizer Global Pharmaceuticals).

NCCN will consider the feedback and discussion from the NCCN Oncology Summit to further modify and improve the NCCN Comparative Therapeutic Index and resulting White Paper.  The White Paper will be published in JNCCN – The Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network in 2010.

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