Impact of novel agents on patient-relevant outcomes in patients with previously untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia who are not eligible for fludarabine-based therapy

Background: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is an orphan disease that primarily affects the elderly. The majority of symptomatic patients eligible for frontline treatment are unfit for fludarabine based chemoimmunotherapy. Historical treatment includes chlorambucil (Chl), bendamustine/rituximab (BR), and chlorambucil/rituximab/ChlR combination. Clinical guidelines now recommend the use of novel agents, such as ibrutinib (Ibr), in both frontline and relapse settings and other novel agents, such as idelalisib (with rituximab), in relapse settings. Despite compelling clinical results for novel agents, follow-up in clinical trials is relatively short and, thus, the comparative long-term benefits are still unknown.

Materials and methods: The authors developed a simulation model to generate treatment specific lifetime estimates of Overall Survival (OS) and Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) for treatment with BR, Chl, ChlR, and Ibr. Two potential clinical scenarios were modelled: with and without novel agents for treating CLL. The model was based on health states relating to first- and second-line progression-free survival (PFS), post-progression survival, and death.

Results: Where novel agents were assumed unavailable, mean OS ranged from 5.4–8.5 years and QALYs from 3.5–6.1. Where novel agents were available, the mean OS increased to 10.0 years, with a corresponding increase in QALYs to 7.6. Frontline Ibr use followed by Physician’s Choice, including novel agents at relapse, resulted in projected increase in OS of between 18% (1.5 years) and 85% (4.6 years), corresponding to a 25–117% increase in QALYs, compared with currently available traditional therapies.

Limitations: The limitations of this analysis include immature OS data and the assumption of equivalent efficacy across all novel agents in terms of their impact on PFS and OS.

Conclusions: The use of novel agents is predicted to yield substantive gains in predicted lifetime OS and QALY improvements compared to traditional therapies in CLL patients who are ineligible for fludarabine-based chemoimmunotherapy.     

Treatment patterns and cost-effectiveness of first line treatment of advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer in Medicare patients

Aim: To assess the cost-effectiveness of first-line pemetrexed/platinum and other commonly administered regimens in a representative US elderly population with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Materials and methods: This study utilized the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) cancer registry linked to Medicare claims records. The study population included all SEER-Medicare patients diagnosed in 2008–2009 with advanced non-squamous NSCLC (stages IIIB–IV) as their only primary cancer and who started chemotherapy within 90 days of diagnosis. The study evaluated the four most commonly observed first-line regimens: paclitaxel/carboplatin, platinum monotherapy, pemetrexed/platinum, and paclitaxel/carboplatin/bevacizumab. Overall survival and total healthcare cost comparisons as well as incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were calculated for pemetrexed/platinum vs each of the other three. Unstratified analyses and analyses stratified by initial disease stage were conducted.

Results: The final study population consisted of 2,461 patients. Greater administrative censorship of pemetrexed recipients at the end of the study period disproportionately reduced the observed mean survival for pemetrexed/platinum recipients. The disease stage-stratified ICER analysis found that the pemetrexed/platinum incurred total Medicare costs of $536,424 and $283,560 per observed additional year of life relative to platinum monotherapy and paclitaxel/carboplatin, respectively. The pemetrexed/platinum vs triplet comparator analysis indicated that pemetrexed/platinum was associated with considerably lower total Medicare costs, with no appreciable survival difference.

Limitations: Limitations included differential censorship of the study regimen recipients and differential administration of radiotherapy.

Conclusions: Pemetrexed/platinum yielded either improved survival at increased cost or similar survival at reduced cost relative to comparator regimens in the treatment of advanced non-squamous NSCLC. Limitations in the study methodology suggest that the observed pemetrexed survival benefit was likely conservative.     

基于生存分析的碳纤维复合材料技术专利有效性研究

为了探索我国碳纤维复合材料技术专利有效性规律,借助生存分析模型及生命表理论,计算出各类专利权人专利有效性 S(x)及其中位数和半衰期,并剖析专利失效原因。结果表明：国外发明有效专利期限较国内长,国内企业、高校专利有效率高于个人和科研院所,失效主要原因是视为撤回、未缴年费以及驳回;国内企业实用新型专利有效保存期限最佳,个人次之,高校和科研院所有效期限最低,均不超过5年,失效主要原因是未缴年费。     

The effect of own-firm and other-firm experience on foreign direct investment survival in the United States, 1987–92

We argue that foreign firms operating in a host country generate information spillovers that have potential value for later foreign direct investment. We test two predictions. First, we expect foreign direct investments by firms with experience in a host country to be more likely to survive than investments made by first-time entrants. Second, foreign direct investments will be more likely to survive the greater the foreign presence in the target industry at the time of investment, subject to two contingencies. The first contingency is that the relationship will be weak or nonexistent among firms with no experience in the host country, because these firms have difficulty evaluating and taking advantage of the information spillovers. The second contingency is that the presence of other foreign firms will not affect investment survival among firms that already have a presence in the target industry and undertake expansion. These firms already possess general information about the target industries and are unlikely to gain additional benefit from information spillovers. We find supportive evidence based on the survival to 1992 among 354 U.S. investments undertaken by foreign firms in manufacturing industries during 1987. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Agglomeration economies,firm heterogeneity,and foreign direct investment in the United States

An overlooked aspect of agglomeration economies, which are positive externalities that stem from the geographic clustering of industry, is that firms contribute to the externality in addition to benefiting from the externality. This insight suggests that if firms are heterogeneous they will differ in the net benefits they receive from agglomerating. We argue that firms with the best technologies, human capital, training programs, suppliers, or distributors will gain little, yet competitively suffer when their technologies, employees, and access to supporting industries spill over to competitors. Therefore, these firms have little motivation to geographically cluster despite the existence of agglomeration economies. Conversely, firms with the weakest technologies, human capital, training programs, suppliers, or distributors have little to lose and a lot to gain; therefore, these firms are motivated to geographically cluster. As a result, when firms are heterogeneous we expect agglomeration to be characterized by adverse selection. We find supportive evidence of these arguments by examining the location choice and survival of foreign greenfield investments in U.S. manufacturing industries. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dominant designs and the survival of firms

The economic, population ecology and strategic perspectives on firm survival are here complemented by viewing the same phenomenon from the viewpoint of technology evolution as well. The hypothesis tested is that the competitive environment of an industry, and therefore the survival of firms in it, is substantially affected by the evolution of the technology on which it is based. Survival analysis is applied to data from six industries. The results show that by explicitly including technology as a dynamic and strategic variable our understanding of firms' survival potential and success can be enhanced.     

Environmental selection and retail change

In Finland and the other Nordic countries the debate on structural change in retail trade has been mainly concentrated at the macro-level. Reasons for the changes have been sought in the economic, technological and social structures, and in changes in these structures. Committees and others connected with community planning have played a central role in the debate. Considering the extent of the debate, there has been relatively little real research, and the various studies have generally been based on a limited number of variables.In view of the social importance of retail trade, it might seem surprising that researchers have shown so little interest in the structural changes in retail trade and in the results of such changes. The explanation probably lies in the lack of theory, and maybe also in problems connected with the availability of material.Research now needs to focus more on individual stores. This article presents a study intended to re-focus the debate on structural change in retail trade by studying the reasons for the closure or survival of operations in the rural store. The results emphasize external factors: the environment selects those stores that are best suited to its purposes.     

市场化背景下电影的生存法则——从张艺谋“大片”看中国电影走向

张艺谋是当代中国电影史上传奇人物。这位集摄影、演员、导演于一身的电影"怪才"、"鬼才",几乎每部电影都能引起轰动效应和票房奇迹。近几年,张艺谋一改以往拍文艺片的戏路,拍起了商业电影。该文以张艺谋"大片"《英雄》、《十面埋伏》、《满城尽带黄金甲》为分析对象,剖析作为类型电影商业化现象的走向,从中探讨中国电影和出路。     

The shadow of death: do regional differences matter for firm survival across native and immigrant entrepreneurs?

Do regional differences matter for firm survival across native and immigrant entrepreneurs? We investigate this question applying a unique data derived from the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Matters in Munich, Germany. The data consist of 110,250 companies either founded or liquidated during the period 1997–2004. We develop a Gompertz-Makeham hazard model to predict the chances of firm survival. After controlling for individual and environmental characteristics, we found that the performance of German and foreign companies do differ across administrative districts. Indicators such as tax trade collection rate and unemployment rate lead to significant increase in the hazard rate, while the population density and share of foreign population enhance the survival chances. The relationship between survival and agglomeration versus founder’s age show an inverted U-shaped pattern.     

Can Facebook popularity help albums to remain in the sales charts?

We empirically investigate the impact of Facebook popularity on the survival of mainstream albums in the sales charts, with our results indicating that running an official Facebook page can improve such survival. Nevertheless, for artists running pages, even in Taiwan, where more than 75% people use Facebook, a blind pursuit of the popularity of all posts will not ensure better survival in the charts.