New Options in Oral Cancer Treatment
Oral treatments can reduce the need for IV infusions
Oral treatments can reduce the need for IV infusions
In the last several years, there’s been a surge in FDA approvals for what’s known as oral oncolytics — targeted cancer therapies that come in tablet, capsule or liquid form that patients can take at home, rather than in an infusion clinic.
Since Scripps implemented its oral oncology program, physicians have seen exponential growth using this approach, with patients citing convenience as a major quality-of-life enhancement in their cancer treatment.
Marin Xavier, MD, a medical oncologist at Scripps Clinic and medical director of Prebys Cancer Center at Scripps Mercy Hospital, notes that while traditional cancer care typically involves intravenous immunotherapy, antibodies or chemotherapy, the landscape is shifting toward targeted therapies, many of which are taken orally.
This approach allows treatments to be customized based on specific genetic mutations and a patient’s unique disease biology. In some instances, these targeted “biologic designer drugs” are administered through an IV, but they are increasingly being developed as oral therapies.
Which cancers can oral treatments treat?
One of the first oral oncolytics, imatinib, was developed in the 1990s and received FDA approval in 2001. It was a targeted therapy for a single mutation that causes chronic myelogenous leukemia.
Since then, there has been an explosion of new offerings, says Dr. Xavier, with options that are targeted to treat leukemia and other types of blood cancer, including myeloma, as well as breast cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer and brain cancer, just to name a few. The pills can be administered on their own or in combination with traditional treatments, like IV chemotherapy or immunotherapy.
“It’s great to have more options for our patients, more targeted therapies and more treatments that are effective when others aren’t,” says Dr. Xavier, adding that oral oncolytics are often “less toxic than traditional chemotherapies and don’t damage healthy tissues and cells outside the target.”
Benefits and limitations of oral cancer drugs
Dr. Xavier emphasizes that there are limitations to oral oncolytics, as they have to be safe to ingest and able to survive the digestive process. Patients also have to make sure they don’t forget to take the pills and that they’re taking them correctly. Still, there are numerous benefits to using oncolytics, she adds.
“You don’t have to lose time away from work and family and the things you enjoy because you’re sitting in a chair, getting an infusion. You don’t have the burden of having an IV or ported catheter access placement. You can travel and not have to be tethered within a certain range of your infusion room,” Dr. Xavier says.
Getting oral cancer medications at Scripps
Scripps patients are also able to have their oral oncolytic prescription filled at a Scripps pharmacy. These pharmacies are conveniently located near Scripps cancer treatment centers and are staffed by advanced pharmacists ready to answer any questions patients have about their medications.
“What I love about Scripps is the level of expertise we can provide to our patients,” says Dr. Xavier. “Every new innovation, every new cancer drug, we are always here to provide the highest level of care.”
This content appeared in San Diego Health, a publication in partnership between Scripps and San Diego Magazine that celebrates the healthy spirit of San Diego.