Studies presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) examine current treatment standards for patients with clotting disorders in an effort to improve outcomes. The studies evaluate long-held treatment standards and whether modifications in intensity and duration of therapy may offer equally effective outcomes while reducing toxicities and relapse rates.
Although significant advances have been made in delivering new and improved therapies for clotting disorders, treatment still presents challenges; patients must balance the burden of therapy and risk of treatment-related bleeding with the threat of potentially life-threatening clotting. The studies presented today examine how simple strategies in the treatment of polycythemia vera (PV) and venous thromboembolism (VTE) may be safe and help produce more effective results in patients with these disorders.
“It is important to constantly evaluate and challenge standard treatment protocols to ensure that we are utililizing the best possible strategies to treat patients with these serious disorders,” said Agnes Y. Lee, MD, moderator of the press conference and Medical Director of the Thrombosis Program and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health in Canada. “Additionally, as we are seeing an increasing number of patients who require ongoing, long-term treatment, it is important to find new ways to improve efficacy and lower the risks of potentially life-threatening complications that accompany these aggressive therapies.”
