ASCO updates VTE prophylaxis, treatment guidelines

medwireNews: Updated clinical practice guidance on the prophylaxis and treatment of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients with cancer is now available from ASCO.

The recommendations are based on an expert panel review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and meta-analyses of RCTs published between August 2014 and December 2018; specifically, there were 35 publications regarding VTE prophylaxis and treatment and 18 addressing VTE risk assessment.

The key updates to the guidelines are:

• high-risk outpatients can be given apixaban, rivaroxaban, or low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) for thromboprophylaxis;
• rivaroxaban and edoxaban are now included as VTE treatment options;
• VTE treatment in patients with central nervous system malignancies now also addresses those with brain metastases;
• extended postoperative thromboprophylaxis with LMWH – for up to 4 weeks – is recommended for certain patients receiving major open or laparoscopic abdominal or pelvic surgery for cancer.

The updated guidelines document is published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

By Shreeya Nanda

medwireNews is an independent medical news service provided by Springer Healthcare. © 2019 Springer Healthcare part of the Springer Nature group

J Clin Oncol 2019; doi:10.1200/JCO.19.01461