Dear CMS Reviewers,
As an oncologist who specializes in treating
prostate cancer patients, I was extremely pleased
when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
approved Provenge for the treatment of
metastatic, castrate resistant prostate cancer as
it represents an important advancement not only
in the treatment of prostate cancer, but the
beginning of a new treatment paradigm for the
treatment of all cancers.
I have used Provenge in my practice and continue
to be impressed by the ease of administration
with the treatment, as well as the almost total
lack of side effects experienced by patients. As
someone who has worked with prostate cancer
patients for nearly 20 years, I am all too
familiar with the difficult issues that patients
sometimes face with other treatments. Provenge
marks a new chapter in how I am able to treat my
patients, one that offers an improved survival
benefit, as well as an extremely mild side effect
profile and treatment duration when compared to
other treatments, such as chemotherapy. The
limited toxicity is so critical in maintaining a
good quality of life in these elderly ,
testosterone deprived individuals.
In addition to my clinical work, I am also the co-
founder and executive director of the Prostate
Cancer Research Institute, a non-profit
educational and research institute the focuses on
disseminating state-of-the-art information about
the diagnosis, staging and treatment of prostate
cancer. Provenge’s availability provides
healthcare professionals, as well as the patients
we treat, with a long-awaited and much-needed
alternative therapy for one of the neediest
patient populations in the prostate cancer
community.
There is a great deal of excitement among the
prostate cancer community to have a new and
effective treatment in the form of an
immunotherapy. I firmly believe that CMS has a
duty to both patients and their healthcare
providers to fully reimburse Provenge for the
indication in which it was approved, ensuring
that patients who have long awaited a new
treatment option to help them in their battle
with prostate cancer will have access to it. I
ask you, as a physician and an advocate for the
prostate cancer community, please do not delay or
inhibit access to Provenge.
Mark Scholz, M.D.
Medical Director of Prostate Oncology
Specialists, Inc., Marina Del Ray, CA
Associate clinical professor at the University of
Southern California School of Medicine
Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Prostate
Cancer Research Institute
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