LONDON, June 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --
Study shows patients treated with
TheraSphere® maintain quality of
life throughout 90 day post-treatment period
BTG plc (LSE: BTG), a global specialist healthcare
company, today announced the results of a pilot study evaluating
the effectiveness of a digital patient engagement platform to
educate, engage, and measure Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL)
in a patient group with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)
undergoing treatment with TheraSphere®, a 90Y
transarterial radioembolization therapy. Results from the study
demonstrated sustained quality of life at regular intervals
throughout three months following treatment. With automated
delivery of digital patient reported outcome (PRO) surveys embedded
within a continuous remote guidance experience, 71% of all PRO
surveys were completed and submitted by patients. 87% of patients
activated their accounts, with a mean overall engagement rate of
65%. This study is the first-of-its-kind in interventional oncology
to evaluate a novel data collection tool that uses automated
prompts to help patients better engage in their own care, while
measuring patient quality of life and satisfaction rates across
their treatment journeys.
(Logo:
http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/513730/BTG_Logo.jpg )
Using the IO Loop™ service (powered by
HealthLoop®), the multi-center study enrolled 41
patients on a digital patient engagement platform to guide them
through their TheraSphere® treatment (21 days
pre-treatment through 90 days post-treatment). Patients were
surveyed at regular intervals (baseline, 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks
post-treatment). The timing of these questions was intended to
address preservation of physical, functional, and symptom-related
quality of life throughout the treatment and near-term follow-up
period. Results delivered via IO Loop™ showed stable quality of
life, and low side-effect concerns, supporting the use of
TheraSphere® to deliver quality of life outcomes
equal-to-or-better-than other traditional cancer treatment
options.
Riad Salem, MD, Northwestern University Feinberg School of
Medicine, IL, and lead author of the study, said: "From these
results we confirm several observations. First, the IO Loop™
service provides a powerful digital tool that delivers on several
counts, bringing considerable benefits to patients and clinicians.
Second, TheraSphere®, a treatment for HCC that can be
done as an outpatient procedure, is very well tolerated. Third,
quality of life is maintained after TheraSphere®, an
outcome in cancer therapy that is extremely important when patients
are ultimately selecting a treatment. Finally, relevant
just-in-time information can be relayed from patients to physicians
in a timely manner, with outcomes immediately accessible for
patient and providers. Using this form of two way communication
improves patient care, quality, and overall satisfaction."
IO Loop™ is a unique service from BTG and the only service of
its kind in interventional oncology that keeps physicians and
patients connected during treatment. IO Loop™ makes it easier for
patients to prepare for their treatment, and track and report
symptoms. This ensures early awareness and timely management of
complications, reducing likelihood of re-admission. Furthermore,
the automated collection of patient reported outcomes helps care
teams meet emerging reporting requirements under the Medicare
Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) that places increased
emphasis on collection of PROs.
"This study shows that digital patient engagement platforms,
delivered via services such as IO Loop™, can educate and empower
patients by automatically providing daily patient check-ins,
education and guidance tools and answers to common questions. By
providing patients with relevant information at the right time, IO
Loop™ helps to make sure clinician-patient interactions are as
valuable and productive as possible," said Edward Kim, MD, Director of Interventional
Oncology and Associate Professor of Radiology and Surgery, Mount
Sinai Medical Center, NY, and co-author of the study.
"Traditionally, we have only learned from patients about their
quality of life after treatment by asking questions at just one or
two time points." said Ben Rosner,
MD, PhD, Chief Medical Information Officer at HealthLoop, "However,
with the right tools, patients are very willing to engage with
their physicians and share information about their quality of life
at frequent intervals, enabling us to learn about the near-term
tolerability of treatments in real-time, in ways we have never
before been able to do."
Lisa Hayden, Vice President,
Global Market Access at BTG commented: "IO Loop™ offers patients
and their clinicians a service that brings them closer together and
utilizes the power of this collaboration to support better clinical
and health-related outcomes. This study demonstrates that using IO
Loop™ to capture PROs after treatment with TheraSphere®
can help clinicians efficiently report patient experience, a
particularly important need given reimbursement requirements. IO
Loop™ is a significant next step in turning patient engagement into
a powerful treatment tool."
About BTG Interventional Oncology
BTG Interventional Oncology is transforming the way cancer is
treated with wide-ranging solutions consisting of
minimally-invasive, highly targeted therapies that can be
personalized to each patient's needs. Our products are used to
treat or provide symptomatic relief for people with cancer and
benign tumors. To learn more about BTG Interventional
Oncology, please visit: www.btg-im.com.
About TheraSphere®
TheraSphere® 90Y glass microspheres are
specifically engineered to carry far greater power than any other
90Y liver-directed cancer therapy, delivering high doses
of radiation to liver tumors while sparing normal tissue. The
result is a powerful, targeted and well-tolerated therapy that may
lead to patients becoming eligible for curative therapies. In
the EU, Singapore, South Korea and Canada, TheraSphere® is approved
for the treatment of hepatic neoplasia. In the US,
TheraSphere® is approved under a Humanitarian Device
Exemption (HDE) for use in radiation treatment or as a neoadjuvant
to surgery or transplantation in patients with unresectable
hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who can have placement of
appropriately positioned hepatic arterial catheters. The device is
also indicated for HCC patients with partial or branch portal vein
thrombosis/occlusion, when clinical evaluation warrants the
treatment. The effectiveness of this device for this use has
not been demonstrated.
For full instructions for use and important safety information,
please visit: www.therasphere.com.
About HealthLoop®
HealthLoop® enables healthcare professionals
to engage with their patients both before and after clinical
encounters or hospital admissions through automated remote guidance
and monitoring. By automatically sending digital notifications to
patients and assessing their progress, HealthLoop remotely
identifies those that need help, allowing clinical teams to
proactively intervene before costs and complications escalate.
Developed as an enterprise solution to support all clinical
specialties, HealthLoop's content and analytics are deeply
integrated into care management workflows. HealthLoop facilitates
over 500,000 patient interactions every month. To learn more,
please visit: www.healthloop.com .
For further information contact:
BTG plc
Chris Sampson, Corporate
Communications Director
+44-20-7575-1595; Mobile: +44-7773-251-178
Media Liaison
Jonathan Falcone
+44-20-8618-2752; Mobile: +44-7825-238-898
Media Liaison - US
Abhi Basu
+1-617-692-0524; Mobile: +1-813-943-4425
