293 Background: Checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) are a treatment option for patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), but there is limited clinical data on the efficacy of targeted therapies following CPI treatment. Cabozantinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that targets multiple receptor kinases implicated in tumorigenesis. In the US, cabozantinib is approved for use in patients with advanced RCC including after CPI treatment. Methods: This retrospective observational cohort study (NCT04353765) evaluated outcomes associated with cabozantinib or other TKIs (axitinib, lenvatinib, pazopanib, sorafenib, sunitinib) in patients with mRCC following CPI treatment. Eligible patients initiated TKI therapy between May 1, 2016 and Sep 31, 2019 and had received a CPI as their last systemic treatment prior to TKI therapy. Patients were identified from the US Oncology Network iKnowMed electronic health record database through structured queries and a targeted chart review. The following real-world outcomes were assessed: 6-month response rate (RR 6months ; primary); overall response rate (ORR); overall survival (OS); time to treatment discontinuation (TTD); rates of dose reductions, and discontinuation due to adverse events (AEs). The p value for RR 6months was used to test for non-inferiority. Results: Eligible patients ( n = 247) had a mean (SD) age of 65.9 (10.5) years and 74.1% were male; 75.7% ( n = 187) received cabozantinib and 24.3% ( n = 60) received other TKIs. All patients had intermediate or poor MSKCC score; more poor-risk patients received cabozantinib than other TKIs (28.9% vs 20%). Outcomes data are shown in the Table. Compared with other TKIs, cabozantinib was associated with a significantly higher RR 6months and ORR, and TTD was twice as long with cabozantinib. Discontinuation due to AEs was more frequent with other TKIs than with cabozantinib, although this was not statistically significant; 21.7% of discontinuations occurred during the first 3 months of treatment. AEs leading to discontinuation were consistent with the known safety profile of the products. Conclusions: In this mRCC population receiving routine care in the US, cabozantinib was used more frequently than other TKIs after CPI treatment. Cabozantinib was an effective and well tolerated option post-CPI, with a high response rate in the real-world setting.abozantinib was associated with a significantly higher response rate and a lower discontinuation rate due to AEs; TTD was double that of other TKIs. [Table: see text]
Abstract Background Generic Prescribing is an essential component of prescribing, however it is often overlooked. Use of brand names can led to poor recognition of the correct medications. It can also led to medication error. It is part of the policy of our hospital group that generic prescribing is used at all times. We performed a similar audit in 2018 and 79% of drug kardexes had brand names used. Prescribing education is an integral part of NCHD teaching. We wished to re-audit to determine rates of generic prescribing now. Methods We reviewed all drug kardexes in 14 wards both medical and surgical in a 48 hour period. Each drug was reviewed and if any prescription had brand names, the entire kardex was deemed non-compliant. Results 285 Drug kardexes were assessed across 14 separate wards. 41% were on surgical wards, 59% were on medical wards. 31 (11%) of kardexes had complete generic prescribing. Only 3 kardexes on the surgical ward had complete generic prescribing. Conclusion The low rates of generic prescribing remain an issue in our university teaching hospital. A similar audit was performed in 2018 with average rates of 20% of generic prescribing. This has decreased in the last year. The failure to generic prescribe puts patients at risk of medication error and also increases cost to the HSE. Education on prescribing is part of the NCHD induction, however, 9 months on there continues to be issues with compliance with generic prescribing. Education alone is not enough to improve current practice. The use of e prescribing offers the potential to alleviate this problem.
Abstract Background Illegible prescribing can lead to medication error and adverse drug reactions. The HSE Standards and Recommended Practices for Healthcare Records Management and the Practice Standards and Guidelines for Nurses for Prescriptive Authority have highlighted criteria which should be adhered to in relation to prescribing. We set out to audit compliance with these standards in relation to legibility of prescriptions in an Irish University Teaching Hospital. Methods Over a 48 hour period, drug kardexes were reviewed on 14 separate in-patient wards. Legibility was judged by a single assessor on each ward. A drug kardex was deemed legible if all of the following criteria were met: The chi squared test was used to determine the significance of the difference in proportions for categorical variables. Results 285 drug kardexes were reviewed over the 48 hour period. 41% were on surgical wards, 59% were on medical wards. The median patient age was 70 (IQR:55-78), and 56% were male. 48% of drug kardexes were deemed legible. A higher proportion were deemed legible on medical wards compared to surgical wards (68% vs 19% p<0.05). Upper case was used in 13% of kardexes, with similar proportions on medical and surgical wards. Conclusion Poor legibility of drug kardexes may increase risk of medication errors and adverse drug reactions. We plan to commence targeted prescribing education sessions to highlight the current deficiencies and improve current practice. Changes to kardex layout may also aid legibility. Long term planning for electronic prescribing would also help resolve issues in this area.
Abstract Background There have been conflicting findings in studies exploring the relationship between caregiving and mortality, which may relate to differences in type and intensity of caregiving. Methods In the prospective National Institutes of Health American Association of Retired Persons (NIH-AARP) Diet and Health Study (n = 148,792, mean age 70.8 years), we evaluated the association of caregiving with all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality, and explore whether the association differed by type of caregiving (adult or children) and by duration (hours per week). Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for mortality associated with caregiving of adults and of children were estimated with the use of Cox proportional-hazards regression models, with non-caregivers as the reference category. Results During a mean follow-up of 12.9 years, 59,046 deaths were recorded. Overall caregiving for adults (HR 0.90; 95%CI 0.88–0.93) and children (HR 0.71; 95%CI 0.70–0.73) were associated with a lower risk of all cause-mortality, which was consistent for cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular deaths. However, among adult caregivers, there was evidence of a dose–response with attenuation risk reduction among those caregiving for 7 hours per week or more (HR 0.95; 0.89–1.01) compared to those with short duration adult caregiving (HR 0.88; 0.85–0.91), on multivariable analyses. The association of caregiving of children was consistent across duration categories. Conclusion Among older adults, caregiving was associated with an overall reduced risk of mortality. However, we found differences in magnitude of association by caregiver type and duration and observed no reduction in mortality among those providing adult caregiving for 7 hours or more per week.
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