Unlocking the Potential and Promise of Precision Medicine in Cancer Care

Read time: 4 minutes

The 66^th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition is a premier event for hematology professionals worldwide that showcases groundbreaking research and fosters collaboration and education within the field.

This year, STAT News, a news outlet focused on the latest news in medicine, science and biotechnology, hosted a live fireside chat to discuss the challenges and opportunities to providing precision medicine for patients in need, especially in the community oncology setting where 80-85% of all cancer patients are treated.

The panel was moderated by Nicholas St. Fleur, STAT reporter, associate editorial director of events, and host of STAT’s health equity podcast, “Color Code.” The panel included:

• Devon Womack, president, The US Oncology Network (“The Network”)
• John Burke, MD, blood cancer specialist, Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers

While Dr. Burke shared his unique perspective as a practicing community hematologist, Devon highlighted efforts of the McKesson team in helping advance the practice of precision medicine, from accelerating the clinical development of new treatments to strengthening adoption and access.

Below are key takeaways from this moderated panel discussion.

Putting Community Oncology Practices at the Center of the Precision Medicine Revolution

To unlock the full potential of precision medicine, community oncology practices, which often serve diverse patient populations in rural areas, play a crucial role in the broader adoption and access to these treatments beyond large hospital or academic centers. Yet community practices face unique difficulties in the adoption of precision medicine, including areas for growth in understanding the latest biomarker testing and treatment guidelines, insufficient technical support, and difficulty accumulating data for small patient populations.

 “We’re in 31 states, we’re in rural communities across the U.S., and many of our providers are seeing all types of cancer patients,” Womack said. “Being able to make sure that we’re using things like our Pathways Committee that Dr. Burke leads to share best practices, NCCN guidelines that have been powered into the technology our providers use, and […] education helps us to make sure that we’re able to reach the diverse population that we get to see every day.”

Accelerating Clinical Development of Precision Medicine is Key to Expanding Access and Adoption in the Community Setting

A clinical trial should be the first option for a patient fighting cancer, not the last. Through our joint venture with Sarah Cannon Research Institute, one of the world’s leading oncology research organizations, we are expanding patient access to cutting-edge clinical trials for novel precision medicine treatments close to home.

“Access to me means how we are enabling research as a first option for patients, not just if you have the ability and the resources to get into a great academic institution,” Womack explained. “Which has a place, but also if you’re in a rural town outside of Austin, Texas where I grew up, [it’s important] that you can also get access to really excellent research.”

 “I think the number one issue is underserved populations are not having precision medicine tests done enough,” said Dr. Burke. “It’s an ongoing challenge, and something we’re working on.”

Technology Innovations and Ongoing Education Should go Hand-in-Hand in Improving the Practice and Access to Precision Medicine

Across The Network’s more than 2,750 independent community providers, we’re harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to match eligible patients with appropriate precision medicine clinical trial options so providers can provide access to cutting-edge treatment in the community setting. We also offer a comprehensive education program to practices in The Network to help advance precision medicine expertise among oncologists. We know we can’t do this alone, and we partner with other healthcare stakeholders to increase understanding of precision medicine utilization, as exemplified by the recent partnership between Ontada and the FDA to study 10 different rare cancers over five years with the goal of facilitating a better understanding of oncology patient care in the community setting for rare cancers.

“As we see more testing and drugs coming to fruition, […] we can partner together to educate our practices [and] our providers – and as quickly as possible – within the technology we use across The US Oncology Network,” Womack said. “[And, we can] connect between the NGS test results of patients and provide options, whether research options, trial options or standard-of-care options. Being able to quickly ingest and then turn those results into action is something I’m really passionate about, and I think it’s going to allow us to enable patients to get the right therapy more quickly.”

Implementing these solutions will require coordinated efforts from healthcare providers, researchers, policymakers and patients, and are vital for reducing disparities in cancer care and improving the overall outcome for all patients, regardless of geographical location.

Learn more about McKesson’s oncology and specialty solutions by visiting Oncology Solutions | McKesson.

Pictured in the video at the top of the page, from left to right, are: Moderator Nicholas St. Fleur, STAT reporter; and panelists, Devon Womack, president, The US Oncology Network, and John Burke, MD, blood cancer specialist, Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers.