Drugs Show Promise Slowing Advanced Melanoma
Reviewed By
Rating
Drugs Show Promise Slowing Advanced Melanoma
Our Review Summary
The story made strong, clear attempts to report in a restrained manner, using terms/phrases such as:
- “notable progress”
- “do not cure”
- “might add two to several moths to expected lifespans”
- “To be sure, more than half of patients with metastatic melanoma would not be helped all that much by either drug.”
Why This Matters
Stories about cancer – perhaps especially melanoma because of its treatment challenges – should balance promise with realistic context. This story did a better job of that than the competitors’ efforts we reviewed.
Criteria
Satisfactory
The significant costs of both drugs were mentioned. Nice job.
Satisfactory
Good job describing the benefits reported in the two drug studies. The two papers present a bewildering array of statistics. This story did a nice job distilling the information into a couple of very understandable sentences.
Satisfactory
Good job explaining signifcant potential harms of both drugs – something competitors didn’t do at all.
Satisfactory
Nice job, including linking (in the online version) to the papers in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Satisfactory
No disease-mongering of melanoma.
Satisfactory
Several independent sources cited.
Satisfactory
The story adequately explained the comparisons between both new drugs and the older dacarbazine chemo drug.
Satisfactory
Vemurafenib was described as experimental and as “expected to be approved by the FDA within a few months.” Ipilimumab was explained to be approved in March and already on the market.
Satisfactory
The relative novelty of both drugs was well explained.
Satisfactory
It’s clear that the story did not rely on a news release.
Total Score: 10 of 10 Satisfactory
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