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Haemato-Oncology: High-Quality Care and Access to Innovations

15 June 2021

The session ‘Haemato-Oncology: High-Quality Care and Access to Innovations’ was held as part of the business programme of the Healthy Life Area on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

The event was attended by Yevgeny Kamkin, Russian Deputy Minister of Health; Dmitry Morozov, State Duma Deputy and Chairman of the State Duma’s Health Protection Committee; Andrey Kaprin, General Director of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Russian Ministry of Health; Yelena Chernyakova, Chairwoman of the Federal Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund; Valery Savchenko, General Director of the National Medical Research Centre for Haematology under the Russian Ministry of Health and Senior Independent Haematology Expert for the Russian Ministry of Health; Jerome Bouyer, Area Vice President–EEMEA of AbbVie; Vadim Ptushkin, Senior Independent Haematology Expert, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Haematology at Moscow City Haematology Centre of the Botkin Clinical City Hospital under the Healthcare Department of Moscow, Doctor of Medicine, and Professor; Irina Poddubnaya, Head of the Department of Oncology and Palliative Care at the Russian Medical Academy of Continuing Professional Education under the Russian Ministry of Health; Lilia Matveyeva, President of the SODEJSTVIE Russian Society of Hematology; and Sergey Voloshin, Head of the Clinical Department of Chemotherapy of Hemoblastosis, Depression of Hematopoiesis, and Bone Marrow Transplantation at the Russian Research Institute of Hematology and Transfusion Medicine of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency. The session was moderated by Alexander Petrov, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Circulation of Medicines and Development of the Pharmaceutical and Medical Industry of the State Duma’s Health Protection Committee.

“The 2020 pandemic made a number of adjustments to the provision of medical care, while assistance for oncology was provided in full. We continued implementing the national project to combat cancer and, as a result, conducted more than 6,000 events throughout Russia, as a result of which more expensive and effective drugs became available to patients, and ultimately we achieved the main target of reducing mortality,” Russian Deputy Minister of Health Yevgeny Kamkin said.

The Russian Ministry of Health combined efforts with federal and regional healthcare organizers to achieve significant progress in providing high-quality medical care to patients with haemato-oncological diseases. Haemato-oncology is included in the Oncological Disease Management Federal Programme. National clinical recommendations, treatment protocols, and standards are regularly updated. In addition, a unified digital office is being created to monitor the situation and to forecast the amount of medical care for patients, plus latest generation target drugs are gradually included in restrictive lists.

“Haemato-oncology above all means the availability and provision of effective therapy to patients. Despite 2020, we are doing everything we can to ensure patients are provided for. Haemato-oncological diseases now fall into the oncology profile and receive additional funding from the federal budget through compulsory medical insurance. More than 20 clinical guidelines have been updated and approved by the scientific and practical council. In 2021, the list of types of high-tech medical care included two new groups, thanks to which it became possible to use highly effective targeted drugs in the treatment of patients with acute myeloid and lymphoblastic leukaemia,” said Andrey Kaprin, General Director of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Russian Ministry of Health.

The experts who took part in the discussion said using the most effective innovative drugs not only makes it possible to achieve the best results in the treatment of patients with haemato-oncological malignancies, but also provides an opportunity for the efficient spending of budgetary resources.

“Over the past 25 years, thanks to the use of new drugs and early diagnosis, the death rate from cancer has decreased by 15%. But many countries still have limited access to new drugs, and solving this problem requires a dialogue and the introduction of tools that will make it possible at the regional level to fully provide assistance in accordance with the latest clinical recommendations, ” said Jerome Bouyer, Area Vice President–EEMEA of AbbVie. He also noted that his company supports Russia’s commitment to innovation and is ready to offer its support and experience in implementing initiatives that aim to improve the standards of medical care and the quality of life of patients.

According to leading federal centres and regional experts, in order to significantly increase the access to high-quality medical care for patients with haemato-oncological diseases today, an additional focus is needed on the following aspects: increased financing, timely experience exchange among federal and regional experts, teaching regional healthcare experts and organizers the principles of resource base usage (working with the digital outline and planning the required volume of medical care). Also, when choosing the most effective treatment in addition to achieving the best clinical results considerations should include effective expenditure of budget resources.

“Today, the issue of haemato-oncology is quite acute. The main sore spots are in the regions. I’m certain that the joint work of the executive authorities, deputies, public organizations, and the professional community will produce the desired result for us and the objectives we have set will be fulfilled,” said Alexander Petrov, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Circulation of Medicines and Development of the Pharmaceutical and Medical Industry of the State Duma’s Health Protection Committee.

During the session, experts discussed the prospects for improving clinical guidelines for the treatment of haemato-oncological diseases, further plans for organizational innovations to provide patients with quality medical care, as well as how an increase in funding for the 14 nosologies will affect the availability of targeted therapy for patients with haemato-oncological diseases.

The session was supported by AbbVie.

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