M. Alexander Otto began his reporting career early in 1999 covering the pharmaceutical industry for a national pharmacists' magazine and freelancing for the Washington Post and other newspapers. He then joined BNA, now part of Bloomberg News, covering health law and the protection of people and animals in medical research. Alex next worked for the McClatchy Company. Based on his work, Alex won a year-long Knight Science Journalism Fellowship to MIT in 2008-2009. He joined the company shortly thereafter. Alex has a newspaper journalism degree from Syracuse (N.Y.) University and a master's degree in medical science -- a physician assistant degree -- from George Washington University. Alex is based in Seattle.
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ESMO helps hematologists assess new cancer drugs
The group’s new study evaluation tool, the ESMO-MCBS:H, is aimed at helping doctors and others determine the benefit of new blood cancer therapies...
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Ibrutinib + venetoclax: High-risk features don’t lessen CLL response
Expert cautions that upfront targeted therapies for CLL should be considered experimental, given the adverse events and lack of long-term follow-...
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CAR-T hikes overall survival in relapsed/refractory LBCL
Investigators say axi-cel should become the standard of care for second-line large B-cell lymphoma.
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CLL: Venetoclax combos top first-line chemoimmunotherapy
A triple-therapy combination yielded the best outcomes, but it should still be considered investigational.
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“Terrific progress”: Adding blinatumomab for infant leukemia
Immunotherapy plus chemotherapy improves outcomes and may soon become first-line treatment for a rare pediatric blood cancer.
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Adding venetoclax improves ibrutinib outcomes in CLL
A small study yields sanguine news about a combination treatment, as hematologists await phase 3 results.
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FDA approves first gene therapy for bladder cancer
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration
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Beta-thalassemia: Benefits of gene therapy outweigh costs
Following treatment with betibeglogene autotemcel, some patients went without transfusions for 8 years and counting.
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Poorly matched stem cell transplants linked to ancestry
To address disparities, medical institutions also need to improve their assessments of financial hardship.
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FDA approves first gene therapy for hemophilia B
The gene therapy will cost $3.5 million, making it the most expensive treatment to date.
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FDA grants accelerated approval for new treatment of female cancers
Eligible patients for mirvetuximab soravtansine include those with folate receptor alpha, chemo resistant ovarian, fallopian and peritoneal...
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Experts opine on hemophilia treatments
For hemophilia A prophylaxis, debate continues over factor versus non-factor replacement therapy, optimal trough levels, and more.
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Adding immunotherapy to chemo in lung cancer improves patient outcomes, new data show
Patient-reported outcomes are often released well after efficacy data, making treatment decisions more challenging.
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Symptoms, not pelvic exams, pick up most endometrial cancer recurrences
The findings speak to the anxiety of shifting to telemedicine during COVID-19.
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Complex surgery 10 times more likely with some ovarian tumors
Imaging, tumor subtype predict debulking success in advanced ovarian cancer.