Insight

Danielle Backers: …even when it gets overwhelming, it’s a fulfilling journey and a much better one with friends in the oncology space to discuss various topics with.

Photo from Danielle Backers/LinkedIn

Sep 17, 2023, 18:10

Danielle Backers: …even when it gets overwhelming, it’s a fulfilling journey and a much better one with friends in the oncology space to discuss various topics with.

Quoting Danielle Backers on LinkedIn:

”The oncology pharmacy landscape is ever-changing with new drug approvals, accelerated approvals, FDA label changes, emerging literature, precision medicine, lions, tigers, and bears. Oh my! But I love this specialty, and even when it gets overwhelming, it’s a fulfilling journey and a much better one with friends in the oncology space to discuss various topics with. (Shout out to Kelley D. Carlstrom, PharmD, BCOP and the ELO Collaborative!)

Just recently, Enhertu (fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki), a drug most commonly used to treat certain breast cancers, lung cancers, and GI cancers, was updated in NCCN guidelines from a moderate emetic risk to a high emetic risk drug. In simpler terms, if someone on Enhertu were to take it without another medication that decreases the risk of vomiting, then > 90% of the time, they would experience this uncomfortable side effect.

Thankfully, multiple drug classes are available that decrease chemotherapy’s nausea/vomiting potential. From an access-to-care perspective, authorization denials can be real barriers that delay the time for a patient to receive necessary therapy. We can now request authorization for these helpful antiemetics, like aprepitant, an NK-1 RA, to be used with Enhertu and receive payer authorization with more ease.”

Danielle Backers: ...even when it gets overwhelming, it's a fulfilling journey and a much better one with friends in the oncology space to discuss various topics with.