Immunology

The emergence of immuno-oncology, in which a patient’s own immune system is activated to fight the cancer, has shown promise in certain tumor subtypes, notably with therapies such as ipilimumab, which has been approved for metastatic melanoma.

But immuno-oncology presents certain challenges. Patients may not be “cured” in the conventional sense; rather, the disease may be converted to a chronic condition. In some cases the person can return to work, but in others, that’s not possible. This raises important policy choices when employers pay for healthcare. - See more at: http://www.ajmc.com/publications/evidence-based-oncology/2014/November-2014/AJMC-Panel-Explores-Immuno-oncology-and-What-Making-Cancer-a-Chronic-Condition-Means-for-Payers#sthash.Cr9sqCWa.dpuf