To find the best pet insurance we reviewed each companys policy wording and used data provided by PetInsurer.com to score each pet insurance company based on the following:

Pet insurance rates: 40% of score. We calculated average rates for plans with $5,000 or unlimited coverage, a $100 deductible and an 80% reimbursement level, or the closest options available.

Special waiting period: 10% of score. Many pet insurance companies have a special waiting period for problems such as cruciate ligament issues and hip dysplasia. Plans that had no waiting period, a waiting period of six months or less, or the ability to have the waiting period waived scored higher.

Direct payment to vet: 10% of score. Pet insurance companies that have the ability to pay a vet directly earned points.

24/7 vet health line: 10% of score. Insurers that provide access to a 24/7 vet health line scored in this category.

Routine wellness plans: 10% of score. Insurers that offer wellness plans, either included with a plan or as a rider, earned points.

Dental coverage for illness: 10% of score. While most insurers cover dental accidents, not all insurers cover dental illnesses, such as gum disease or cleanings. Plans with more extensive dental coverage scored higher.

Pet ownership assistance: 5% of score. Insurers that include coverage for pet owner expenses, such as advertising and reward for lost pets, boarding for medical emergencies, end of life expenses and/or vacation cancellation, scored in this category.

Any discount: 5% of score. Insurers that offer any kind of discount, including a multi-pet discount, healthy pet discount, loyalty discount, etc., earned points.

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Pets Plus Us Pet Health Insurance Review 2023 Forbes Advisor ... - Forbes

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Integrated analysis of next generation sequencing minimal residual ... - Nature.com

When treating patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), early identification and appropriate frontline therapy remains critical, and therapies may vary for those 65 years and older compared with patients under the age of 65, with several additional factomd andersonrs also having a role in approaching treatment options for a new patient in the clinic, according to Michael L. Wang, MD.

Wang, a professor in the Department of Lymphoma/Myeloma at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, explained the factors he considers when determining the optimal therapeutic strategy for patients with MCL during the 27th AnnualInternational Congress on Hematologic Malignancies: Focus on Leukemias, Lymphomas, and Myeloma.1

Although age under 65 years and 65 years and older are used to stratify patients, Wang noted that translating these criteria to the clinic, a range of plus or minus 5 years can be used to adjust for care. Factors to consider include performance score. For example, Wang cited a very healthy 70-year-old patient or a patient who is 60 years with comorbidities and a low performance score.In addition to determining urgency of care, examining the patients cardiac history is crucial with renal and bone marrow function also being key factors. Treatment history with response from last therapy, duration of prior treatments, and history ofBruton tyrosine kinase(BTK) inhibitors should also be considered along with further parameters such as toxicities and transplant history.

Clinically you absolutely want to know the patients cardiac history and you want to know their kidney history, Wang said. Cardiac history is very important; I will not feel comfortable starting the patient with a BTK inhibitor without getting [a] cardiology consultation, electrocardiogram, stress tests, [and] echocardiogram.

Attention should be given to the organ system as a spleen over 20 cm may rupture and gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding can be severe. Central nervous system involvement when it is high-risk should be monitored as well.

Gastric MCL is quite commonly seen and sometimes you do an endoscopy but find that [the patient] had a volcano sitting theretheres a crater and near the crater theres a big artery ready to burst.

Examining pathology is key to determine if the MCL is pleomorphic or blastoid, and as MCL has 2 presentations, one of them being chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and this needs to be specified. Wang also noted he will run laboratory analyses such as creatine and lymphocytosis tests, and staging for MCL is more up in the air than staging is for other types of lymphoma, at MD Anderson Cancer Center, he will confirm complete response with PET/CT scans, bone marrow, and GI biopsies.

As knowledge on the role of genetic abnormalities continues to grow in MCL, there are limited data in many areas and it is unknown whether certain mutations, such as CARD11, will prove to be reliable targets. Other driver mutations, such as NOTCH1, NOTCH2, and c-myc have been shown to be associated with poorer outcomes. Wang highlighted that data may be gleande through programs such as the MCL Program of Excellence at MD Anderson in which patients with relapsed or refractory MCL undergo a front-door genetic panel and minimal residual disease and RNA-sequencing.

Frontline therapy for MCL is the most important therapy [as] many patients have only one opportunity [for treatment], Wang said. Each time you give a therapy the efficacy goes down [and] the interval of remission shortens until about 5 to 10 cycles, [then] the resistance becomes 100 [and] the efficacy becomes 0.

The natural history of MCL has shown that patients tend to be in remission and then relapse, with this occurring multiple times. Giving the best treatment in frontline when the patients immune resources, bone marrow, and organs are still in good condition is important. Wang noted he uses doublet therapies for those with high-risk disease because single-agent rituximab (Rituxan) is not adequate. Maintenance therapy is critical as well and other factors to keep in mind during treatment are toxicities, COVID-19 infection, and the personal history of patients including insurance, family support, and home location.

There is art in maintenance after frontline therapy. Rituximab is useful [to] prolong overall survival after almost any therapies, he said.

Although rituximab plus ibrutinib (Imbruvica) has demonstrated high response rates and can be used effectively, atrial fibrillation remains a prominent cardiac toxicity occurring in approximately 24% of patients.2 The R2 regimen of lenalidomide (Revlimid) and rituximab is an effective therapy that can be dose adjusted for renal failure. Wang noted he would also use the combination in patients with certain disease characteristics, such as tonsillar MCL or lymphoma that moves in the renal gland.

For patients with high-risk diseasea Ki67 index greater than 50%, a TP53 mutation, and/or pleomorphic/blastoid diseasetreatments include the SHINE regimen (ibrutinib, bendamustine[Bendeka]/rituximab and rituximab maintenance)3, rituximab plus ibrutinib maintenance for 2 years, acalabrutinib (Calquence)/venetoclax (Venclexta)/rituximab, or acalabrutinib plus R2. Wang said that rarely are bendamustine/rituximab and rituximab maintenance used or RCHOP plus rituximab.

MD Anderson is also evaluating rituximab plus acalabrutinib, rituximab plus pirtobrutinib, rituximab/pirtobrutinib/venetoclax, and ibrutinib monotherapy for smoldering MCL.

Younger patients with high-risk disease can receive the Window 2 study (NCT03710772) therapy of ibrutinib, venetoclax, and rituximab followed by a risk-stratified observation or short-course R-hyper-CVAD, according to Wang. Additional therapies include rituximab plus ibutinib with or without venetoclax maintenance for 2 years, acalabrutinib/venetoclax/rituximab, or acalabrutinib plus R2.

The Window-3 trial (NCT05495464) is ongoing at MD Anderson evaluating more treatment combinations for patients in this subgroup.

Approved agents for the treatment of MCL are bortezomib, lenalidomide, ibrutinib, acalabrutinib, zanubrutinib, the CAR T-cell therapy brexucabtagene autoleucel (Tecartus), and, most recently, pirtobrutinib (Jaypirca). Targeted agents and combinations such as BTK inhibitors, brexucabtagene autoleucel, chemotherapies, and stem cell transplants are under additional investigation as well.

Additionally, low-dose radiation for patients with an ATM mutation has shown efficacy and Wang noted that only 1 to 2 cycles of radiation are needed. Forty percent of patients have a frontline ATM mutation, he said. When you have ATM mutation the tumor is exquisitely sensitive to radiationso radiation therapy is a great therapy for MCL, sometimes you dont have to use high doses.

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Wang Details Caveats to Standards of Care for Treating Patients ... - OncLive

EricVan Cutsem,MD, PhD, professor of medicine, division head, Department of Digestive Oncology, University of Leuven (KUL), University Hospitals Gasthuisberg, Leuven Belgium, discusses primary efficacy and safety findings from the phase 3 SPOTLIGHT (NCT03504397) and GLOW (NCT03653507) trials investigating the monoclonal antibody zolbetuximab (IMAB362) in metastatic gastric cancer.

The international, randomized, placebo-controlled SPOTLIGHT trial compared the use of zolbetuximab plus mFOLFOX6 vs mFOLXOX6 and placebo in patients with Claudin 18.2 (CLDN18.2)positive, HER2-negative, locally advanced, unresectable or metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma, Van Cutsem begins. A significant proportion of patients with advanced gastric cancer are CLDN18.2-positive, he notes.

Primary results from the study presented at the 2023 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium showed that zolbetuximab plus mFOLXOX6 elicited statistically and clinically significant improvements in both progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), Van Cutsem states.

Positive topline results from the GLOW trial of zolbetuximab in combination with capecitabine and oxaliplatin (CAPOX) were also recently reported, Van Cutsem adds. This trial evaluated this regimen vs CAPOX plus placebo as first-line treatment in the same population as SPOTLIGHT, and zolbetuximab plus data demonstrated a statistically significant PFS and OS for patients treated with zolbetuximab plus CAPOX.

These randomized studies support use of zolbetuximab in combination with current chemotherapy regimens as a novel and effective treatment strategy for CLDN18.2-positive advanced gastric cancer, Van Cutsem states.

Additionally, HER2, microsatellite instability status and PD-1 biomarker testing is now standard in the frontline setting for advanced gastric cancer. If zolbetuximab receives approval in this setting, CLDN18.2 should be assessed as an additional prognostic marker in this disease space, Van Cutsem concludes.

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Dr. Van Cutsem on Primary Findings from the SPOTLIGHT and ... - OncLive

Enrollment has commenced for a phase 2 trial (NCT05739981) investigating the DNA-based interleukin-12 (IL-12) immunotherapy IMNN-001 (formerly GEN-1) in combination with bevacizumab (Avastin) and chemotherapy in patients with advanced ovarian cancer.1

The study is expected to enroll 50 patients with stage III/IV advanced ovarian cancer, and it is being led by principal investigator Amir Jazaeri, MD, the vice chair for Clinical Research and director of the Gynecologic Cancer Immunotherapy Program in the Department of Gynecologic Oncology and Reproductive Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

The medical need for new innovative therapeutic approaches in ovarian cancer is major. The majority of patients with ovarian cancer are diagnosed with stage III/IV disease and face low cure rates of 15% or less, Corinne Le Goff, PharmD, MBA, president and chief executive officer of IMUNON, stated in a news release. The amount of data this study will generate will be a huge contribution to the treatment of ovarian cancer, and we believe the combination of IMNN-001 and bevacizumab has important potential.

In our animal studies, the combination clearly showed strong synergies. We are hoping that with this study we can potentially transform the current treatment landscape and provide new hope to women suffering from this deadly cancer.

IMNN-001 is an IL-12 DNA plasmid vector encased in a nanoparticle delivery system that enables cell transfection followed by persistent, local secretion of the IL-12 protein.

Previously reported data from the phase 1 OVATION 1 trial (NCT02480374) showed that the combination of IMNN-001 plus chemotherapy demonstrated activity and safety in patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer. Among 14 enrolled patients, 12 (85.7%) experienced a radiological response, including 2 complete responses and 10 partial responses.2

The most common treatment-emergent adverse effects that were at least possibly related to treatment included nausea, fatigue, abdominal pain/cramping, anorexia, diarrhea, and vomiting. Grade 4 neutropenia occurred in 8 patients, and this was attributed to neoadjuvant chemotherapy. No dose-limiting toxicities were reported.

The phase 2 trial is enrolling patients with a suspected diagnosis of high grade epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal carcinoma with histologic confirmation per pre-treatment biopsies.3 Patients are also required to have an International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage of III or IV that has been determined to benefit from neoadjuvant therapy.

Other key inclusion criteria include the discontinuation of any hormonal therapy directed at the tumor within at least a week prior to first study treatment, an ECOG performance status of 0 or 1, and adequate bone marrow, renal, hepatic, and neurologic function.

The trial is excluding patients who have received prior treatment with IMNN-001; have had treatment with corticosteroids within 2 weeks of study entry or have a clinical requirement for ongoing systemic immunosuppressive therapy; have autoimmune disease requiring immunosuppressive therapy within the past 2 years; or have received prior radiotherapy or chemotherapy to any portion of the abdominal cavity or pelvis.

Enrolled patients are being randomly assigned 1:1 to receive chemotherapy plus bevacizumab with or without IMNN-001. Chemotherapy will consist of 175 mg/m2 of paclitaxel followed by area under the curve 5/6 of carboplatin on day 1 of each 21-day cycle. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy will consist of 4 to 6 cycles per investigators discretion, and adjuvant chemotherapy will last for another 3 cycles.

Bevacizumab will be administered at 15 mg/kg on day 1 of cycles 2, 3, 6, and 7, and bevacizumab will also be given as a single agent every 3 weeks during the maintenance phase for up to 18 cycles, or until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. In total, bevacizumab will be given in up to 22 cycles.

Patients in the experimental arm will be given 80 mg/m2 of IMNN-001 once per week on day 15 of cycle 1 and continued through the end of adjuvant therapy. Following the conclusion of chemotherapy, IMNN-001 will be administered every 21 days with bevacizumab in patients who are BRCA negative and homologous recombination proficient.

The primary end point of the study is reducing the minimal residual diseasepositivity rate at second look laparoscopy from an expected 70% in the control group to 35% in the experimental group. Secondary end points include progression-free survival and overall survival.

Break Through Cancer is excited to support this important study, Tyler Jacks, PhD, president of Break Through Cancer, founding director of MITs Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, and the David H. Koch Professor of Biology, stated in a news release.1 Our foundation has brought together some of the nations top cancer research centers to collaborate, accelerate research and clinical trials, and ultimately intercept and find cures for the deadliest cancers.

The phase 1/2 OVATION 2 trial (NCT03393884) is also evaluating IMNN-001 plus paclitaxel/carboplatin vs chemotherapy alone.4

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Enrollment Begins for Phase 2 Trial of IMNN-001 Plus Bevacizumab ... - OncLive

Medical imaging is not, of course, a single technology, but an umbrella term for a bunch of different methods of getting a handle on what's going on within our bodies. One example might be a combination of these methods, like the Explorer total-body scanner, which performs both PET and CT scans. Without these advancements, we'd be devoting a lot more resources to palliative care. The tech in question includes x-rays, CT scans, MRIs, and ultrasounds, and each has changed the diagnostic landscape in its own way.

But x-rays themselves aren't just a diagnostic tool. They are used to guide surgeons, monitor the progress of therapies, and inform treatment strategies for the use of medical devices, cancer treatments, and blockages of various sorts. In 1896, the then-hyphenated New-York Times mocked Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen's medical application of X-ray imaging as an "alleged discovery of how to photograph the invisible." Five years later, Rntgen won the Nobel Prize in Physics. A century later, X-rays have replaced invasive surgeries and guesswork as a core diagnostic tool for doctors at every level.

Less a new imaging technology than a brilliant implementation of existing methods, computed tomography (CT) uses cross-sectional X-ray images acquired from various angles and computer algorithms to rapidly create a navigable, three-dimensional image of small or large parts of the body. Because it's based on X-rays, CT scans are better at imaging bones than soft tissues. CT scans provide many of the same benefits as other medical imaging methods, enhanced for many purposes by their speed and superior imaging of bones.

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Tech Inventions That Changed The Health Industry Forever - SlashGear

KND Labs, a manufacturer of nutraceutical ingredients with an initial focus on hemp plant-derived cannabinoids, has announced apartnership with Israel-based plant molecular harvesting companyReaGenics. As a new commercial platform for KND Labs, the partnership will enable the company to expand its product offerings in the global nutraceutical and ingredients marketplace.

As a producer of many ingredient forms including powdered isolates, distillate oil, and liquid or powder water-soluble solutions, KND Labs currently serves many industries and is an ingredient partner to many of the worlds largest product brands.

As a proven partner across many industries from food and beverage to nutraceuticals, pet, and cosmetics, KND Labs is thrilled to expand our supply chain and product offerings through this partnership with ReaGenics, said Nich Wilson, KND Labs president. This capability directly supports the companys growth goals and allows us to target, extract and commercialize revolutionary ingredients within the KND Labs platform we are known for.

ReaGenics is a Nes Tziona, Israel-based plant molecular harvesting company that provides technology to support the growth of living plant stem cells economically and at scale, without having to depend upon natures elements. Through its proven technology and process, the company is able to access molecular materials that are of interest in various industries including food and beverage, herbal medicine, and other applications.

With processing plants in the Denver area, KND Labs will utilize the ReaGenics partnership to move into new areas of expertise in the coming years, while offering ReaGenics access to its established production facilities and customer distribution network.

Our world urgently needs a way to keep up with the growing demands of medicines, food supply chains, and the problem of so many of the worlds plant species on their way to extinction, said ReaGenics CEO Dr. Michael Kagan. We believe ReaGenics will be part of the solution to ensure these global needs and challenges are met. This partnership with KND is an important first step.

The partnership will benefit both companies growth efforts in the nutraceutical, food, and pet industries, with KND Labs focusing on making new products available.

Many customers are looking to KND Labs for our industry expertise and scaling capabilities as they aim to diversify their ingredient supply chains, said Dave Swany Swanwick, KND Labs director of sales. "This partnership with ReaGenics enables us to offer a greater variety of ingredients, at scale, to our direct partners as well as for network marketing sellers of hemp plant-derived products, and it will allow us to further grow our footprint as the premier provider of high-demand nutraceutical ingredients. We are very excited to be improving supply chain access and commercializing rare ingredients worldwide.

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KND Labs & ReaGenics Announce Partnership to Expand Food ... - Pet Business Magazine

Expert says mounting microplastic pollution is turning Earth into a giant chemistry experiment

Our world is getting polluted with plastics on a planetary scale. We cant see much of it, but were starting to feel it. And its getting worse.

The plastic bottle tossed by the roadside and the endless trash heaps in third-world countries are just the beginning. As the trash ages, it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, until it cant be seen with the naked eye anymore. At that point, however, the problems have barely begun.

These tiny pieces of plastic, called microplastics, have permeated everything, scientists have found in recent years. They can be as large as 5 millimeters and as small as 100 micronsabout as thin as a human hairor even smaller, at which point theyre sometimes referred to as nanoplastics.

Microplastics have been found in the most remote corners of the world.

It doesnt matter where we look. We find microplastics. In the environment, it could be the bottom of the Marianna Trench, it could be the top of Mount Everest and everywhere in between, said Sherri Sam Mason, associate professor at Penn State Behrend and expert on microplastic pollution.

As a consequence of it being everywhere in the environment, its everywhere within living organisms.

Microplastics have been found in the animals we eat, in the water we drink, and in the air we breathe. Its in our blood and in our organ tissues, even the deepest tissue of our lungs.

We have a tendency to have this illusion that our skin separates us from the environment, but it is an illusion, Mason said.

Children, nowadays, are being born with microplastic already in their bodies.

Plastic particles have been found on both sides of the placental boundary, meaning its seeping from the mothers body into the unborn child.

The repercussions of such pollution are largely unknown. Getting definitive answers has proven immensely difficult. What research has been done, however, indicates the effects are negative.

With regard to the human health impacts of it, perhaps unsurprisingly, none of them are good, Mason said.

There are many ways to address the issue, but its not clear whether a definitive solution is practically achievable. The pollution can be greatly reduced by ditching single-use plastic packaging and reforming the fashion industry. That still leaves a massive amount of plastic entering the environment, not to mention the substantial pollution there already is.

So far, research has largely focused on gauging the scale of the issue. It wasnt until 2018, for example, that a paper was published at least somewhat accurately estimating how much plastic is floating in the Great Pacific Garbage Patchthe largest of several massive accumulations of plastic trash in the oceans. Even then, the estimate ranged from 45,000 to 129,000 tonnes.

Worldwide, some 7 billion tonnes of plastic trash are estimated to be in the environment, in landfills, oceans, dumps as well as just strewn around. That amount is expected to grow to 12 billion by 2050.

Research has already found that small pieces of plastic are a problem for fish and birds who mistake them for food. The plastic sits in their stomachs, making them feel full even though they may be malnourished. That in turn affects their growth and ability to procreate.

What the more microscopic plastic particles may do to the bodies of animalsor humans for that matteris mostly unknown and may to a large degree remain so.

One of the problems is isolating the effect of plastics from all the other factors messing with human health.

Some of the impacts are not acute. If you have a liver pack-full of nanoplastics or its in your placenta, how do you correlate that to harm? said Marcus Eriksen, co-founder and researcher at 5 Gyres, an environmental group that aims to reduce plastic pollution.

He cautioned that in many cases, were not going to get clear-cut evidence because of the complexity of trying to establish a cause-effect relationship.

One of the most established ways to discover the health effects of a substance is through placebo-controlled clinical trialspreferably long-term. But thats particularly difficult in this case. Microplastics are so pervasive there may be nobody left to form a control group.

Were all exposed. Whos not? Eriksen commented.

Heath impacts can be studied to some extent through animal experiments. Its also possible to use artificial human tissue grown from stem cells.

Its expensive and time-consuming, he said.

Its easier to look at the effects of chemicals added to the plastics, such as flame retardants in solid plastics or water repellents in fabrics.

We know more about the chemicals than we do the plastics, the material itself, Mason acknowledged, adding that there are more than 10,000 chemicals that are used in the manufacturing of plastics, and many of these we already know have human health impacts.

Moreover, microplastic can act as a temporary sponge, absorbing chemicals from the environment and releasing them later inside an organism, said Lisa Erdle, director of Science & Innovation at 5 Gyres.

Some of the chemicals added to plastics can cause cancer or harm fertility, according to Mason.

As for the plastics themselves, some studies suggest they may worsen Alzheimers disease and disrupt cell function, according to Mason and Erdle.

Theres starting to be a connection being made between this material and certain neurological diseases, Mason said.

Another factor complicating the research is the immense variability of plastics.

At their core, plastics are made of large hydrocarbon molecules that can be assembled into a virtually infinite number of shapes and variations, giving them different physical and chemical properties. The complexity of discerning their health effects one by one and in various combinations is then also nearly infinite.

Moreover, new kinds of plastics are developed all the time. Current science has no way to determine in advance all the long-term health effects of each type of plastic after it breaks down into microplastics and spreads throughout the environment.

We have turned our planet into a giant chemistry experiment, Mason said.

Were doing an experiment on ourselves and our children and our childrens children.

She pointed to hubris as the cause of our throwing caution in the wind as we think that were smarter than we are.

Maybe it will take 10 years, maybe it will take 50 years, but its going to come back to bite us, she said.

Eriksen acknowledged that the jury is still out on the long-term effects of plastic pollution. But he argued its time to pause and rethink how we do things.

The abundance of novel chemicals in society, in our environment, and the lack of understanding of how they affect these living systems and their interaction effects, it makes me want to employ the precautionary principle, he said, though he acknowledged data on the issue is still lacking.

Does the research show that the impacts should cause public fear? Not quite there yet. Because the research, it takes a long time, he said.

But my gut says, Do no harm. Im always for prevention of a problem if you see it happening. Why wait until the problem is much bigger than it already is to then say, Oh, its a big problem?

Even though the plastic pollution problem may be impossible to solve completely, there are ways to mitigate it. About half of all plastic pollution is estimated to come from single-use packaging. Much of it has non-plastic alternatives.

There are also companies working on alternative materials that naturally break down.

Were seeing a lot of investment, [venture capital] money, going to some of the new biomaterial companies. Its pretty inspiring, Eriksen said.

A material called PHA, for example, is made of a chemical that microbes use in their cellular wall to store energy.

We can extract that and make what looks and feels like plastic. It has a long shelf life, it can be translucent, it can be made in different colors, it can be made into rigid plastics or flexible plastics. And in the environment, it begins to break down very quickly, he said.

Theres also a company thats developing a material that works as plastic cling wrap, but is made of seaweed and breaks down after discarding.

Those materials are still more expensive than plastics though.

They have the challenges that any startup might have, Eriksen said, hoping that as the production scales up, the price will drop.

Industries that use plastics for single-use packaging may be willing to pay a bit more in exchange for the positive PR a more nature-friendly material could bring, he suggested, referring to his conversations with corporate executives in the industry.

Theyll shift if the science is good, the packaging works for them, and gives them a good story to tell.

Recycling could work in theory, but in practice remains inefficientnew plastic ends up being cheaper.

You have to get it back from the consumer, then you have to repolymerize it, repelletize it, and distribute that to your costumers, Eriksen said. Those are real expenses and thats not as efficient as the system of extracting raw materials and making virgin resin.

Producers that are willing to use alternative or recycled materials are those in the high-end market able to absorb the costs, he said.

The only way to give recycling an economic chance, he opined, would be to force producers to buy recycled material by government fiat.

Another problem is that a lot of plastics cant be recycled, such as the thin plastic film used for packaging, which is expected to greatly increase in production in the coming years.

Even materials that can be recycled may end up in the landfill if the manufacturer combines them with unrecyclable substances in the same product.

If you take plastics and you line it with metal or paper or use adhesives or have different kinds of polymers in one product, it makes recycling mechanically very difficult, in some cases economically impossiblenot worth it, Eriksen said.

Youve got to set up for success. And thats been an endless fight for decades.

One of the supposed success stories of recycling is turning plastic PET bottles into synthetic fleece fabric.

In Eriksens view, however, thats a marketing scheme rather than a long-term solution.

Synthetic textile, and fleece in particular, stands as the No. 2 plastic pollutant behind single-use packaging. Synthetic threads are the most pervasive microplastic pollutant in human lungs, according to Erdle, who specializes in research in this area.

The fibers shed directly from synthetic fabrics like clothing, carpets, and upholstery. They also shed into wastewater when the fabric is washed.

A single load of laundry can release up to eight million fibers, Erdle said.

Wastewater treatment plants are able to filter out the threads, but some end up in the sludge called biosolids, which is then used as a fertilizer. The fibers are thus dumped into soil from which they are then picked up by wind or surface water and travel large distances in air currents. Just like other plastics, they break down into smaller and smaller pieces over time.

We dont really know how long theyll last in the environment just because all the studies to date that have tested them show little to no degradation, she said.

A partial solution is installing filters in washing machines that can capture most of the escaping lint.

It would also help to use less synthetic fabric, or at least switch to ones that shed less.

There are lots of brands that are working on developing textiles that shed fewer microfibers, or if they do shed fibers, they are less toxic, less persistent, and are ultimately causing less harm, Erdle said.

A major help would be to step back from the current fast fashion culture that produces a never-ending stream of fleeting trends followed by an avalanche of low-quality garments destined to be discarded.

One movie star wears a hat and suddenly there are a gazillion low-quality hats on the market and people buy them. And in a few months, theyre not in fashion anymore, Eriksen commented, noting that trashed clothing has become a major source of pollution.

Many plastics can be easily burned, but that comes with its own suite of problems, Mason said.

Its very dirty.

Burning plastics, particularly those that contain PVC, releases large amounts of toxic chemicals, many of which are highly poisonous and carcinogenic. The fumes can be filtered, but some amount of the chemicals still get through.

You cant engineer these things to perfection. And many of these chemicals are known to have human health impacts at parts-per-trillion levels, she said. Thats like a single drop in an Olympic-size swimming pool.

Mason sees only one true solution: use less plasticsubstantially less.

Both Mason and Eriksen support new government regulations that would ban single-use plastic packaging, for example.

The trouble is, much of the plastic packaging and much of the synthetic fabric is made overseas, in countries like Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and China. Even if they were forced to stop exporting such products to the United States, they still produce massive amounts of plastic pollution themselves.

The United States mismanages less than 3 percent of its plastic waste, according to estimates made in a 2020 paper, while China mismanages 25 percent, Thailand and Indonesia over 60 percent, and the Philippines and India over 70 percent.

And that doesnt even begin to address the billions of tons of plastic trash already in the environment that is steadily breaking down into microplastic trash.

Mason and Eriksen place some hope in the United Nations treaty on plastic pollution currently in the works. It was endorsed by 175 countries in a resolution last year (pdf).

But the resolution still emphasizes things like recycling and ocean cleanups, neither of which amount to a solution, Eriksen said.

The solution isnt going to be more cleanups. Were not going to recycle our way out of this problem. Its going to take smart policy that applies to everyone and levels the playing field.

The resolution, however, suggests that it wont apply to everyone equally.

It acknowledges that the effective implementation of some legal obligations under the instrument is dependent on the availability of capacity building and technical and adequate financial assistance and provides for flexibility that some provisions could allow countries discretion in implementation of their commitments taking into account the national circumstances.

Beyond the treaty, Mason and Eriksen suggested the West should still do what it can on its own, but if that doesnt make enough of a dent, there doesnt appear to be a definitive solution, save a miracle.

I do agree that currently it looks dark, that currently, at best, our present efforts are only working to slow the pace and not reverse the tide, which is what we need, Mason said via email.

I do certainly have my times of feeling like it is all hopeless, but cannot stay in that space because well I have a daughter and someday I may have grandchildren, and so I have to keep fighting. History does tell us that all is hopeless until it is not. At some point, and hopefully at a point in which it is not too late, we will have no choice but to change.

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'We're All Exposed': How Microplastic Is Affecting Our Health and ... - The Epoch Times

A derelict post office building in a seaside town in Essex is being transformed into a new gym. The former Post Office on Rectory Grove in Leigh-on-Sea closed down around six years ago and is now being turned into an Anytime Fitness gym.

The new gym will be run by Zoe Georgiou and her husband Tony. Speaking to EssexLive, Zoe said she was brought up in Leigh and feels passionately about bringing wellbeing and a healthy lifestyle to the area.

She said: "I know the area well and I know the building well and I remember the post office and so we thought it was perfect for us." She added: "We definitely want to restore the building. We definitely feel that it is vert much a hub of Leigh on Sea and we want to bring that back to life again, for the community.

Read more: The upmarket seaside town that's full of family-run, independent businesses

"And I think the community could benefit massively from a gym where people can come and meet, improve their health and their lifestyle." The building is also located right in the heart of the town, making it accessible for everyone.

Zoe said: "The key thing is that we want to operate our gym on the basis of bringing the community together. And that includes partnering with local businesses in the community to bring our members membership benefits and other benefits."

Due to the size of the building, instead of focusing on classes for members, the new gym will be offering group training with personal trainer-qualified team members as part of memberships. It'll deliver a more personalised experience, Zoe said, being able to see and engage with the instructors more easily and to get more personal training in that time as well.

The Anytime Fitness gym on Rectory Grove in Leigh-on-Sea will be opening in the second half of this year.

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Derelict Leigh-on-Sea Post Office to be transformed into new gym - Essex Live

In this article: About Hip Dysplasia | Top Pet Insurance Companies | Is Pet Insurance Worth It? | Waiting Periods | Is Hip Dysplasia a Preexisting Condition? | FAQs | Methodology

Hip dysplasia is a painful malformation of the hip joint that can affect your pets mobility and quality of life. It can happen to cats and dogs at any age, but older, large-breed dogs such as German shepherds and golden retrievers are most susceptible.

Because hip dysplasia is an expensive chronic condition, many pet insurance companies place exclusions and waiting periods on related expenses. These are the best pet insurance providers for hip dysplasia to ensure your pet receives coverage.

Most pet insurance companies cover hip dysplasia, but only under certain conditions. Most importantly, there must not be any signs or symptoms before your policys effective date or during the waiting period.

Many providers have a special waiting period for orthopedic conditions, including hip dysplasia, typically six to 12 months. Additionally, theres often a bilateral condition exclusion, which means that if your pet shows symptoms in one hip before or during the waiting period, dysplasia in the other hip isnt covered either.

Based on our rigorous research, these are the top pet insurance companies for hip dysplasia.

Spot earns our top spot because it has one of the shortest waiting periods for hip dysplasia: only 14 days, the same as any other illness. The company also has more customizable coverage than competitors, including annual limit options between $2,500 and unlimited.

+ Short hip dysplasia waiting period

+ Option for unlimited annual coverage

+ No upper age limits

Relatively long accident waiting period

Doesnt pay the vet directly

Spot covers hip dysplasia under its accident-and-illness plan. You can add one of its wellness plans for preventive care.

To learn more: Spot Pet Insurance review

Get your quote: Fill out Spots online quote form

Trupanions waiting period for hip dysplasia is also relatively low at 30 days. Theres no upper age limit or bilateral exclusions, which is rare. Trupanion further stands out for its flexible deductible, allowing pet owners to choose a rate between $0 and $1,000. Its deductibles are per condition, not annual, and are paid for the lifetime of your pet once reached.

+ 30-day waiting period for hip dysplasia

+ Pays directly for vet visits, rather than reimbursing you later

+ Unlimited coverage cap

30-day waiting period for illness coverage

No add-on for preventive care

Trupanion covers hip dysplasia under its standard accident-and-illness plan. You can add its Recovery and Complementary Care package to get coverage for healing treatments such as acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments, hydrotherapy and rehabilitative therapy.

To learn more: Trupanion review

Embrace covers hereditary conditions such as hip dysplasia with no per-incident coverage caps. Although theres a six-month waiting period for orthopedic conditions, this can be reduced to as little as 14 days if you fill out a form and take your pet for an orthopedic exam. Embrace also offers multiple discounts and a Healthy Pet Deductible benefit that credits pet owners $50 toward their co-payment each year they dont file a claim.

+ Orthopedic Exam and Waiver reduces the waiting period for hip dysplasia

+ Diminishing deductible for each year without a claim

+ Two-day waiting period for accident coverage

Low coverage limit for preventive care

$25 enrollment fee

Embrace covers hip dysplasia in its standard accident-and-illness plan. You can get wellness coverage by opting for its wellness add-on.

To learn more: Embrace Pet Insurance review

Get your quote: Fill out Embraces online quote form

Formerly PetPlan, Fetch by Dodo covers hip dysplasia after a six-month waiting period. It doesnt limit payouts by condition or lifetime, which will prove valuable for something like total hip replacement surgery. It also offers robust holistic care such as acupuncture, homeotherapy and stem-cell therapy.

+ No per-condition coverage cap

+ Covers alternative therapies

+ Healthy Pet Credit offers discounts for years without filing claims

No routine care coverage

Long average claim processing period

Fetch covers hip dysplasia under its standard accident-and-illness plan. It doesnt offer add-ons for preventive care.

To learn more: Fetch Pet Insurance review

Get your quote: Fill out Fetchs online quote form

Youll need to enroll your pet by age 6 to qualify for hip dysplasia coverage from Healthy Paws. The companys selling point is its unlimited annual and lifetime coverage caps. These ensure you wont have to worry about going over your maximum limit when treating a condition like hip dysplasia, which sometimes requires costly surgery.

+ Most claims processed within two days

+ No coverage caps

+ Covers some alternative treatments

12-month waiting period for hip dysplasia

Other age-based exclusions

Healthy Paws covers hip dysplasia in its standard accident-and-illness plan. It doesnt offer add-ons for preventive care.

To learn more: Healthy Paws Pet Insurance review

Get your quote: Fill out Healthy Paws online quote form

ASPCA pet insurance is a seasoned provider with more than 15 years of experience. Though the company is a little unclear about its coverage policy for hip dysplasia, the condition doesnt appear to be subject to any exclusions apart from a 14-day waiting period.

+ Short waiting period for hip dysplasia

+ Covers alternative therapy, end-of-life expenses and some prescription food

+ Option to add wellness care

Unlimited coverage not available by online quote

Coverage may vary by state

ASPCA covers hip dysplasia in its accident-and-illness plan. It also offers two wellness add-ons with different coverage levels and annual limits.

To learn more: ASPCA Pet Insurance review

Pets Best insures pets of all ages, but it stands out for its coverage of older pets. Unlike competitors, it has no age limit and allows you to enroll your pet anytime. It offers excellent hip dysplasia coverage starting after 14 days and covers wheelchairs prescribed by a vet, which some pets will need when suffering from the condition.

+ Hip dysplasia waiting period is only 14 days

+ Coverage for wheelchairs and prosthetics

+ Vet Direct Pay available in some areas

Illness coverage not available to some pets with severe chronic conditions

Exclusions for parasites and alternative therapies

Pets Best covers hip dysplasia in its accident-and-illness plan. It also offers two wellness add-ons for preventive care.

Pet insurance for hip dysplasia is only worth it if you enroll your pet before it shows signs of the condition. Otherwise, hip dysplasia will be considered a preexisting condition, and you wont be reimbursed for related costs. Enrolling your pet while its still healthy could save you thousands of dollars since hip dysplasia treatments are generally expensive. Most treatments require surgical procedures such as triple pelvic osteotomy and femoral head osteotomy, which can cost $6,000 or more.

Theres always a waiting period for hip dysplasia, as there is for all illnesses and conditions. Many pet insurance policies have much longer waiting periods for hip dysplasia and cruciate ligament problems than other illnesses and conditions.

Preexisting conditions are never covered by pet insurance. If the condition shows up during the waiting period on your policy, its considered preexisting.

If your pet is already showing signs of hip dysplasia, you wont receive coverage for the condition. However, pet insurance will still cover expenses for accidents or unrelated illnesses. So if your pet is still young and healthy but prone to hip dysplasia, its worth buying pet insurance now to know it will be covered later. You could save thousands of dollars.

Frequently Asked Questions About Hip Dysplasia

Our review of pet insurance companies is based on in-depth industry research that includes reading hundreds of customer reviews, simulating the quote and purchasing process, speaking to representatives on the phone to assess the customer service experience and surveying 1,000 dog and cat owners nationwide to determine the most important elements of pet insurance coverage. We have scored each provider on a 100-point scale based on those elements.

Here are more details about each factor and how theyre weighted:

We use our rating system to compare and contrast each company against key factors to help us determine the best pet insurance companies in the industry. Additionally, we keep our research up to date and revisit our reviews on a regular basis.

Dana Getz is a seasoned editor with nearly a decade of experience writing and editing content. She has a background in journalism and worked as a fact-checker for prestigious magazines such as New York and Chicago. She holds a journalism and marketing degree from Northwestern University and has worked across numerous categories within the home services space.

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Best Pet Insurance That Covers Hip Dysplasia - MarketWatch