Drugs

Researchers Look at Twitter for Clinical Trial Recruitment

Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania say social media like Twitter could become a useful tool for clinical researchers’ recruitment efforts, but there are caveats. Challenges include “noncoercive content and the assurance of privacy, both of which the IRBs [institutional review boards] will need to consider carefully,” the researchers write in a JAMA Oncology research letter. “Future efforts are needed to explore whether Twitter can emerge as a viable medium for promoting accrual to clinical trials,” they conclude.

The researchers conducted a pilot study and analyzed the content of 1,516 tweets from among a total of 15,346 unique tweets that contained the term “lung cancer” over a little more than two weeks in January 2015. About 17.5% of the tweets were related to clinical trials, but only one tweet linked to a patient recruitment Web site, the authors report.

“Social media is a rich and promising avenue for exploring how patients conceptualize and communicate about their specific health issues, but its potential to promote cancer clinical trial accrual remains unknown,” the researchers write. “Social media may provide an infrastructure that allows investigators to interact with the public in new ways, including stimulating interest in new clinical trials with targeted messages to connect patients, caregivers, and families with potential trial enrollment Web sites.”

Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton’s responses on vaccines, contraception and abortion medication during her 9/24 Senate confirmation hearing raise concerns that ideology could influence her decision-making if she takes over the agency, MSNBC senior medical analyst Dr. Vin Gupta said Friday. Gupta was particularly critical of Overton’

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton emerged from her Senate confirmation hearing Thursday (see earlier story) without resolving questions about whether she has enough Republican support to advance — and with a rapidly narrowing window for confirmation before the midterm elections. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing provided few

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA has classified Boston Scientific's recall of its Imager II Angiographic Catheters as Class I because a manufacturing problem could cause catheter tips to degrade and detach, potentially resulting in life-threatening complications. The agency announced the Class I classification 9/25, updating an Early Alert it issued

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome

FDA has approved Roche’s Gazyva (obinutuzumab) for reducing the risk of relapse in adults and children aged 2 and older with frequently relapsing or steroid-dependent, childhood-onset idiopathic nephrotic syndrome who are in remission. The expanded approval covers the use of the CD20-directed antibody beyond its existing

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Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome