We’re rapidly approaching the seventh edition of MedCity CONVERGE, a conference on innovation in cancer treatment and precision medicine. The Philadelphia event brings together thought leaders across venture capital, providers, pharma, patient advocates, health IT, and the startup community.
The conference, taking place July 11-12 at Sofitel, offers a series of discussions about some of the most compelling topics in healthcare from breaking down the data silos in cancer research, how to scale precision medicine, the reimbursement hurdles for genetic testing, AI applications, investment trends in oncology and precision medicine and the patient experience.
Among the event highlights are:
Fireside Chat with Dr. Michael Pellini, Managing Partner with Section 32 and Chairman of Foundation Medicine
A conversation about Pellini’s work on his experience of building a precision medicine businesses and evaluating new healthcare technologies for venture capital firm Section 32.
Promise and Hype of Immunotherapy
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Dr. Joshua Brody, a medical oncologist with Mount Sinai Health System, will be the opening keynote speaker offering his perspective on the impact of immunotherapy and the hype that surrounds this innovative approach to cancer treatment.
Attend MedCity CONVERGE to hear from healthcare innovators such as Michael Pellini and other experts. Use promo code MCN50 to save $50. Register now.
Clinical Trials 2.0
John Reites, Chief Product Officer for THREAD, will moderate a panel discussion on the new breed of clinical trials that harness digital health tools to improve some of the pain points in doing these studies from clinical trial recruitment to enabling virtual clinical trials, and improving the way these studies are managed. Among the participants are Dr. Andrew Chapman, Chief of Cancer Services, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital; Michelle Longmire, founder of Medable; and Dr. Sameek Roychowdhury, Medical Oncologist and Researcher, Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Practical Applications of AI in Cancer
Ayan Bhattacharya, Advanced Analytics Specialist Leader at Deloitte, will moderate a panel discussion on how various forms of artificial intelligence are being used for patient recruitment for clinical trials, data analysis, drug discovery and care delivery. The panelists include: Wout Brusselaers, CEO and Co-Founder, Deep 6 AI; Dr. Tufia Haddad, Chair of Breast Medical Oncology and Chair of IT for the Department of Oncology, Mayo Clinic; Carla Leibowitz, Head of Corporate Development, Arterys; and John Quackenbush, Professor and Director of the Center for Cancer Computational Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
What Patients Want and Need on Their Journey
A panel of patients and experts in oncology care management will discuss what’s needed to make the journey for oncology patients a bit more bearable. The participants include:
Kezia Fitzgerald, Chief Innovation Officer and Co-founder for CareAline Products; Sara Hayes, Senior Director of Community Development, Health Union; Katrece Nolen, Cancer Survivor and Founder, Find Cancer Help; and
John Simpkins, Administrative Director Service Line Director of the Cancer Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
We’ll also highlight healthcare startups such as patient recruitment for clinical trial Seeker Health; Care+Wear, which, like CareAline is using smart fabric design to improve the quality of life for chemotherapy patients; and slide analysis business Cytosavvy.
Photo: Getty Images
