Eisai Adds All Indicated Doses to Lenvatinib Dose Exchange Program After Research Presented at SGO 2022 Annual Meeting
At the SGO 2022 Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer, Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, presented “Overspending Driven by Dose-Specific Packaging of Lenvatinib for Endometrial Cancer,” in which researchers examined overspending due to the limited dose-specific packaging of the drug in cases where patients require dose reductions. Results of the study showed that estimated overspending to be in excess of $168 million annually. The study team included Dr. Aviki; Haley Moss, MD, MBA; Benjamin Albright, MD, MS; Nadeem Abu-Rustum, MD; Elizabeth Jewell, MD; Juliana Leedy, PharmD; and Margaret Liang, MD.
After the abstract titles were released to the public, a representative from Eisai reached out to the study team to discuss optimizing a dose exchange program. The study team was able to get in touch with Eisai’s patient access group and share the details of their study and offer recommendations for ways to eliminate the financial burden created by the dose-specific packaging. “They were extremely receptive, and brought their existing dose exchange program to our awareness,” Dr. Aviki commented, “After a few subsequent meetings we asked them to determine if the program could be expanded to incorporate additional dose reductions. Just prior to going on stage members from their team notified me that they would commit to making the change, and now it’s in effect. We couldn’t be happier for our patients.”
Eisai announced that it will expand its dose exchange program to cover all indicated dose reductions for up to 15 days of a patient’s current dosage for no additional cost, according to a recent article from Medscape. Though Eisai already had a dose reduction program in place, it only covered the first reduction, from 20 mg to 14 mg. Now, it will include 10 mg, and 8 mg (which will be given as two 4 mg capsules). The study estimates that by not covering the 10 mg to 8 mg reduction, Eisai cost US patients and payers almost $72 million per year in wasted medication.
“The impact is two-fold. Now, not only is Eisai exchanging dose packs for all dose reductions, but there is also a heightened awareness of their program by oncologists, which we hope will completely eliminate any patients or insurers having to pay twice for extremely expensive drugs,” said Dr. Aviki.
Though Eisai has had a dose reduction program for lenvatinib since 2019, no members of the study team had ever heard of it, and it was prohibitively difficult to find in a Google search. Since this research was released at the SGO 2022 Annual Meeting, and highlighted in press coverage, awareness among oncologists has increased. “I really want to thank the program committee and Dr. Yamada for choosing to put our abstract on the stage which has generated attention to the issue,” remarked Dr. Aviki. Prescribers can find out more about Eisai’s dose exchange program online and enroll patients with this form.
The progress doesn’t end here, though. While adding more dose reductions to the packaging is a great move toward better optimizing this process for both doctors and patients, more can be done to continually improve patient experience and help them navigate their care.
“I like to use the analogy of calling the pharmacy,” Dr. Aviki remarked, “As a patient, when you try to call the pharmacy about a prescription it takes hours to speak to the pharmacist. As prescribing physicians, we immediately chat with the pharmacist. This small example speaks volumes about our entire industry and why I believe it is critical for members of the health care team to advocate on behalf of patients, particularly when it comes to the financial burden affecting their cancer treatment.
Next steps are to continue to keep our eyes and ears open for issues our patients are facing and make it our cause to navigate our complex health system on their behalf.”