PCPA in the New – 24 Nov 2024
Drug Subsidy bridging fund required for cancer patients, experts argue
Posted 24 November 2024
Jacinta Frawley, a psychotherapist from Sutherland in Sydney, had a stage three ovarian cancer diagnosis that was unresponsive to treatment – until a new treatment handed her a new lease on life.
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Read more online at the Australian (Subscription required)
PCPA in the news – PCPA invites medical oncologists and cancer nurses to participate in genomics workshop
Posted February 15, 2024
Australia’s peak body for private cancer specialists will host a workshop for all medical oncologists and
cancer nurses to gain a practical immersion into how genomic testing can better refine diagnoses, help
predict cancer behaviour and create more effective treatment plans for their patients.
PCPA in the news – High demand topic for oncologists
Posted 15 February 2024
Some oncologists are still battling to get their hands on genetic testing information to diagnose and treat cancer patients – and an upcoming pharma-supported workshop hopes to fix that.
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PCPA in the news – PCPA Launches Practical Genomics Workshop
15 February 2024
PCPA invites medical oncologists and cancer nurses to immerse in the game-changing world of precision medicine
Melbourne. Due to high demand, Australia’s peak body for private cancer specialists will host a unique workshop for all medical oncologists and cancer nurses, to gain a practical immersion into how genomic testing can better refine diagnoses, help predict cancer behaviour and create more effective treatment plans for their patients.
Board member of the Private Cancer Physicians of Australia (PCPA) and workshop Master of Ceremonies, Dr Cameron McLaren, says genomic testing or precision medicine, is a powerful tool that remarkably unlocks the secrets of a patient’s cancer at the genetic level.
“Genomic testing, once a futuristic view of how cancer may be treated, is now transforming cancer care by offering personalised insights for both the patient and those who care for them,” Dr McLaren says. “As importantly as finding new treatments that can help our patients, genomic testing also allows us to choose which treatments will not help, so we can avoid subjecting our patients to toxicities of ineffective treatments.”
PCPA in the news – Patient groups, clinicians and industry challenge the status quo at rare diseases inquiry hearing
Health Industry Hub 1 February 2024
Pharma News: The Senate Community Affairs References Committee, chaired by Green’s Senator Janet Rice, held a public hearing in Sydney yesterday, spearheading an Opposition-led inquiry into equitable access to diagnosis and treatment for individuals with rare and less common cancers.
Addressing the committee, Associate Professor Christopher Steer, President of Private Cancer Physicians of Australia, emphasised “We need to end the cancer lottery where a patient with a particular diagnosis can get support for their treatment whereas another is denied … because their cancer is of the wrong type.”
PCPA in the news – ‘Patients should not be lost in our overly complex health system’, says Private Cancer Physicians of Australia
Health Industry Hub 20 November 2023
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Please also refer to the below link to The Hon Mark Butler MP’s media release in relation to this topic.
PCPA in the news – New podcast urges stakeholders to speak out on access to new technologies
June 30, 2023
AstraZeneca has supported a new podcast that calls for accelerated access to innovative precision medicines and genomic profiling.The podcast is the third in the Private Cancer Physicians of Australia’s (PCPA’s) Cancer Patient Management series.
PCPA, Australia’s peak body for private cancer specialists, has joined other oncology and patient groups to advocate for removing the cost and regulatory barriers for patients with cancer accessing upfront molecular profiling.
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PCPA in the news – New platform for oncologist MedEd
pharma in focus 19 June – 23 June 2023
Posted 21 June 2023
Pharma has a key role to play in helping cancer specialists meet their professional development requirements – and a new digital platform could help that partnership grow further.
The Private Cancer Physicians of Australia (PCPA) has announced the launch of a new digital platform, CPD4MedProfessional.com, which will help cancer specialists meet their updated continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
The new online support program has been developed with the PCPA’s education partners ScienceToLife.
Currently seven pharma companies are part of the PCPA Strategic Alliance Partnership program, supporting educational activities that help medical and radiation oncologists and haematologists meet their continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
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PCPA in the news – can ‘smart bombs’ replace chemo?
pharma in focus 13 June – 16 June 2023
Posted 15 June 2023
Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), described as “biological missiles” and “smart bombs” against cancer, could have the potential to replace chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer.
Speaking on the Private Cancer Physicians of Australia Podcast series, University of California San Francisco Director of Breast Oncology Professor Hope Rugo said the precise and potent surface-antibody drugs were proving effective and better tolerated than existing treatments.
“This is such an exciting topic for all of us,” Rugo said. “It pervades everything we are discussing now in terms of treatment and clinical practice and research.”
She said ADCs, which contain a cancer-specific monoclonal antibody covalently attached to a cytotoxic drug through a chemical linker, were providing effective in different breast cancer subtypes.
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