Long-term side-effect improvement: RCT results showcased at ESMO 2024
One of our Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) was again showcased in a major scientific conference. More specifically, more results and analyses from the prospective RCT on advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients were presented as a poster in the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congress in Barcelona in September 2024.
This is only a few months after the oral presentation of its interim results at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago in June.
Long-term impact on side-effects from personalised patient support
Patients with advanced or metastatic NSCLC experience many complicated side-effects. The CareAcross personalised patient services deliver support to such patients in order to help them improve their quality of life.
Although it has been demonstrated that patient engagement and support can bring important benefits, there is still insufficient evidence regarding the long-term impact, and the predictive power of early signs of improvement.
This analysis presented at the ESMO Annual Congress focused on the most common side-effects reported in the first 3 treatment cycles. It then evaluated their subsequent improvement up to cycle 7.
Results: persistent improvement of most common side-effects
Fatigue, cough, nausea, anorexia, constipation and weight loss were reported often during the first 3 treatment cycles. Fatigue was improved for 33% of affected patients during the next 2 cycles; improvement in other side-effects was more substantial, ranging from 48%-77% of patients.
For the patients who experienced this improvement, it generally persisted for cycles 5-7. More specifically, fatigue did not relapse for 53% of patients who had improved. The patient experience with other side-effects was, again, even better: nausea, anorexia, constipation and weight loss remained under control for 80%-95% of those who had previously improved.
Clinical significance: enhanced workflows and resource allocation
As patients engage with digital health solutions like the CareAcross platforms, their side-effects can start improving early on. Although this enhances clinicians’ workflow, complexities remain.
Therefore, delivering such long-term improvement of side-effects brings lasting benefits for clinicians’ capacity to address more urgent and complicated cases. Moreover, the Real World Data (RWD) from Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) about the incidence and evolution of side-effects can help inform care management pathways and resource allocation strategies.
Ongoing impact across the cancer care continuum
The CareAcross platforms demonstrate ongoing impact for patients and healthcare professionals, throughout the patient journey. Beyond the direct benefits, substantial value is derived from patient engagement as well as the underlying data which constitute important, relevant and actionable insights. Moreover, the complicated correlations between patients’ diagnoses and the details of their personal cancer journey can reveal important interdependencies, uncover unmet needs, and highlight priorities for future research.
Summary: improved quality of life and enhanced clinician workflows that persist
In this abstract and poster presented at the ESMO congress, the CareAcross platform was behind positive long-term impact as illustrated through this prospective randomised clinical trial. This evidence is added to the ASCO oral presentation on improved quality of life and reduced hospitalisation costs. These findings reinforce CareAcross’ leading position in this field and bring more promise for wider application of innovation for the benefit of cancer patients and healthcare professionals.
The abstract, which includes details of the methodology and findings, is available here.
Acknowledgement
CareAcross is indebted to the cancer patients who have been participating in this clinical trial, while facing a particularly challenging condition. We would also like to thank our partners at HeCOG (study sponsor) for the excellent collaboration and SNF (which has funded the study) (more information is available on the abstract linked above).