Gary Monk’s Post

I am keen to dive deeper into Digital Health trends and developments on a regional basis. Where would you like to see the focus, as a priority? Feel free to mention specific countries in the comments #DigitalHealth

Are Generic Drug Manufacturers Reddy for Digital Therapeutics? 💊Indian pharma manufacturer Dr. Reddy's Laboratories has already stated a core focus is digital therapeutics DTx, which makes a lot of sense to differentiate its large portfolio of generic medicines 💊 Dr. Reddy's recently launched Nerivio, a drug-free, non-invasive wearable device for migraine management in Europe marking its entry into digital therapeutics in the region 💊 Nerivio, which is approved by the US FDA and CE-mark certified in Europe, is designed for the acute and preventive treatment of migraines in adults and adolescents 💊 Last year, the company secured an exclusive deal with Theranica, a developer of neuromodulation devices for pain management, to market and distribute Nerivio 💊 Dr Reddy’s has also introduced DailyBloom IBS, a comprehensive integrated care plan for Irritable Bowel Syndrome in India, providing personalized treatment through a mobile app, including diet and wellness support 💊 The program offers a 14-week personalized care plan with consultations, a variety of gut-friendly recipes, and continuous support, aimed at enhancing the management of IBS symptoms 💬 I don’t think Dr Reddy’s or any company is there yet, but having a range of generic drug treatments supported by a comprehensive set of complimentary added value digital health and digital therapeutics tools could equate to a very compelling branded portfolio of digitally powered drugs 👇Link to articles in comments #DigitalHealth #Pharma 

It’s not all about Big Pharma when it comes to Digital Health: 🧠Biopharma Tris Pharma has launched Tris Digital Health, focusing on digital diagnostics and therapies for ADHD and other neurological disorders 🧠Tris have entered a licensing agreement with Braingaze which grants Tris exclusive rights to develop and market a digital diagnostic platform for ADHD in the United States and Canada 🧠Braingaze's digital biomarker based technology leverages artificial intelligence and patented eye-tracking technology to objectively assess attention levels through interactive games, providing probability and severity scores for ADHD diagnosis 🧠This digital tool aims to offer a more precise alternative to traditional, subjective ADHD assessment methods, enhancing diagnostic confidence for healthcare providers 🧠Braingaze’s tool was developed in Europe and carries the European CE Mark as a medical device. With input from the U.S. FDA, Tris Pharma will initiate clinical trials in the U.S. 🧠Tris Digital Health's initiative reflects a broader strategy to integrate innovative digital solutions into ADHD management, think Akili and its video game at the treatment end of the spectrum 🧠The technology has received CE Mark approval in Europe and is slated for clinical trials in the U.S. under FDA guidance to validate its effectiveness for clinical use in North America. 💬 Interesting and important, although this could surely be a powerful tool in objectively tracking and managing the disease understanding how pharma and non-pharma treatments are working? 👇Link to articles in comments below #DigitalHealth #AI 

Evidence eye exams can predict Parkinson’s Disease progression: 🧠Optical coherence tomography (OCT), commonly used in eye exams, can now monitor neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease by measuring retinal thickness 🧠A significant correlation has been found between retinal degeneration and the severity of Parkinson’s disease symptoms, with retinal thinning often occurring before cognitive and motor decline, suggesting it could be an early marker 🧠Routine eye exams might serve as a non-invasive tool to predict and monitor Parkinson's progression, aiding in more precise treatment approaches 🧠The research highlights the varied progression of Parkinson's among patients, currently making it difficult for neurologists to predict specific outcomes such as dementia or severe physical decline 🧠The results were also confirmed by a UK hospital but more validation is still needed in clinical settings, and improvements in technology resolution could also enhance the effectiveness of OCT in monitoring Parkinson’s neurodegeneration 👇Link to article in comments below #DigitalHealth

Chat GPT could be better at assessing eye problems than doctors: 🧿OpenAI's GPT-4 model has nearly matched the performance of expert doctors in diagnosing and suggesting treatments for eye conditions 🧿 The model outperformed junior doctors and matched many specialist doctors in clinical assessments of ocular problems 🧿 Research conducted involved 87 different patient scenarios to test the AI against junior, trainee, and expert eye medics 🧿The study, published in PLOS Digital Health journal, showcases AI's broad capabilities beyond narrow medical tasks like cancer risk assessment. 🧿GPT-4 performed well in both simple recall and complex reasoning tasks, indicating a significant advancement in AI's application in medicine. 🧿While the model is not yet capable of replacing ophthalmologists it could provide useful advice to non specialists, assist in patient triage and support areas with limited access to specialist health professionals 🧿The study emphasizes the need for high-quality data and a balance in training AI with a variety of medical texts and patient notes to refine its accuracy 👇Links to articles in comments #DigitalHealth #AI

Sanofi partner with COTA to Leverage Real-World Data (RWD) and AI to accelerate Cancer Trials: 💊The strategic partnership aims to leverage RWD and artificial intelligence to accelerate current and redesign future clinical trials specifically focused on Multiple Myeloma, a cancer affecting white blood cells 💊 COTA's expertise in real-world data analysis and extensive datasets will provide key insights into cancer treatment pathways, offering Sanofi important context on patient populations with multiple myeloma. 💊 The project and RWD analysis will give a clearer understanding of the treatment landscape including the evolving treatment options for multiple myeloma. 💊 The insights gleaned from RWD analysis will also be used to design more efficient and targeted clinical studies in the future. 💊 RWD can also provide valuable context for interpreting the results of ongoing and future multiple myeloma trials, ensuring their relevance to real-world treatment practices 👇Link to article in comments below #DigitalHealth #AI 

Two-thirds of top 20 pharmas have banned ChatGPT—and many in life sci call AI ‘overrated,’ according to survey: 🚫65% of the top 20 Big Pharmas have banned ChatGPT, respondents (200 life sciences professionals) said those policies were largely linked to concerns that sensitive internal data could be leaked to competitors 🚫To give some context they are not alone, large companies including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, JPChase, Samsung and others have all banned it so lets not pick on pharma too much 🚫I actually don’t blame the companies for being concerned but prevention efforts beyond outright bans, seem to be lacking: The survey found that fewer than 60% of life sciences companies have provided employees with any kind of training or guidelines about safe use of ChatGPT 🚫And although many life sciences companies are actively using AI, 83% of the employees surveyed labeled the technology “overrated,” 💬I don’t blame the employees per se, as while the tech has a lot of potential, successful use cases are fragmented, we are still in the early stages and there is often a belief that AI will be a fix for terrible thinking and processes. However they are foolish if they think ignoring the technology is a good strategy 💬The article misses a big point, probably as the survey did not ask, but many Pharma companies are working on their own private ChatGPT / large language models with their own proprietary data added. So I do believe pharma companies are generally seeing the potential 💬What I do think is shortsighted is the typical pharma attitude to ban new technology (I am thinking back to social media) and being slow to provide guidance and allow controlled usage to experiment and learn. Once the pharma companies launch their own private large language models to employees, likely they will fall flat as these companies will have already killed much of the enthusiasm and creativity around the topic 💬To finish on a positive I did not say all, as I am aware of several big pharma that are both working on their own solutions AND inspiring and educating their staff on the power of generative AI 👇Link to articles in comments #DigitalHealth #AI 

Virtual Reality Eases Pain for Hospitalized Cancer Patients>> 🥽For the study, 128 adult cancer patients experiencing moderate to severe pain were assigned either an immersive Virtual Reality intervention featuring calm, pleasant environments or a 10-minute two-dimensional guided imagery session on an iPad tablet 🥽 Patients were asked to score their pain from 0 to 10 before and after the session. While both interventions reduced pain, the virtual reality sessions were more effective. Those who underwent guided imagery reported an average pain decrease of 0.7 points, whereas participants in the VR group experienced an average reduction of 1.4 points 🥽 Twenty-four hours after the intervention, participants in the VR group reported a sustained improvement in pain severity, with scores 1.7 points lower than baseline, indicating a prolonged analgesic effect. In contrast, the guided imagery group showed a more modest reduction, with pain scores only 0.3 points below baseline 🥽 Importantly people who experienced the virtual reality intervention also reported feeling less distressed by the pain they were experiencing 🥽 The study underscores the potential of VR as a non-pharmacologic pain management tool for cancer patients, offering both immediate and sustained relief. This finding is consistent with broader healthcare trends, where VR is increasingly used to address conditions such as anxiety, social isolation, and various forms of pain 🥽 The exact mechanisms by which virtual reality alleviates pain are not fully understood, but researchers suggest it might act as a distraction or help individuals remain "present" during discomfort. Additionally, it is hypothesized that VR could close specific neural "gateways" in the brain, potentially reducing pain perception 🥽 Federal agencies are moving towards establishing reimbursement pathways for VR interventions, reflecting its growing evidence of efficacy and value in medical practice 👇Link to article and study in comments below #DigitalHealth #VR

💥Wow! What a first quarter of 2024 in the Pharma & Digital Health World 🌅 I don't normally visualize activity on a quarterly basis, but I felt compelled, see how it already almost fills up the slide! ⛓️ Also see how we are already getting links and connections between collaborating companies 🎯The main focus areas are AI in Drug Discovery and Digital Therapeutics 🎁 As an extra special gift I am happy to share the high-res version in PowerPoint with all the news links embedded in the arrows (presenter mode) - just let me know below in comments #DigitalHealth #AI #Pharma

GE HealthCare, Microsoft, and LG Electronics partner on smart hospital project in Korea: 🏥The trio will collaborate and contribute their respective expertise in medical equipment and medtech solutions, smart hospital operation solutions, and cloud and platforms 🏥 Microsoft Korea will help build a platform for utilising digital solutions, including AI algorithm models such as Azure OpenAI for hybrid cloud in healthcare, and Microsoft Teams for staff communications 🏥 GE HealthCare will leverage its digital medical solutions, including medical equipment, command centres, and digital twin technology 🏥 LG Electronics will provide smart hospital technologies, such as smart monitors, medical robots, displays and communication networks 🏥 Besides promoting the construction of smart hospitals, they will develop and propose joint operating models for next-generation medical equipment, AI medical solutions, and digitalisation of work 🏥 They define a smart hospital as a "next-generation hospital where all data from hospital registration and imaging to diagnosis and post-monitoring are connected to streamline medical staff workflows and improve patient outcomes by increasing efficiency through networks such as cloud, AI, and IoT." 👇Link to article in comments below #DigitalHealth #AI