Analysis Group Coauthors Examine the Impact of In-Office Dispensing Services on Prostate Cancer Patients
August 5, 2024
In combination with hormone therapy, some oral anticancer medications have been shown to slow disease progression and prolong overall survival among patients with nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (nmCRPC), as compared to hormone therapy alone. However, access to those medications is uneven across patient populations, a problem that is particularly acute among Black patients with nmCRPC. Providing medications to patients through a pharmacy that is integrated into a clinician’s office – known as in-office dispensing – has been shown to help close gaps in access to medications and improve care for patients with other cancers, though not previously for patients with nmCRPC.
To address this gap, an Analysis Group team led by Managing Principal Patrick Lefebvre, Vice President Dominic Pilon, Manager Carmine Rossi, and Associate Frederic Kinkead coauthored an article with researchers from Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine assessing the impact of in-office dispensing services on nmCRPC patient care. In the article, the authors observe disease progression and clinical surveillance patterns among patients with nmCRPC who were prescribed oral anticancer medications. The authors reported on patients who used in-office dispensing services for their medications and those who did not have access to or chose not to use such services. The researchers found that patients who made use of in-office dispensing underwent fewer bone scans, CT scans, and other imaging than those who did not use such services, and experienced a longer duration between treatment initiation and first follow-up imaging. They conclude that “the utilization of [in-office dispensing] services...may be critical to maximizing the benefits of oral anticancer therapy.”
The article, “PSA Outcomes and Clinical Surveillance Among Patients With Nonmetastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Treated With a Next-Generation Androgen Receptor Inhibitor in Urology Practices With or Without In-Office Dispensing,” was published in the Journal of Clinical Pathways.