INTERVIEWS

Johnny Bench, former Cincinnati Reds Catcher and Baseball Hall of Fame Player who was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma (BCC) the most common type of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) at the age of 64 and is now cancer-free discusses the Let’s Get Real About Skin Cancer Campaign and the importance of “catching” non-melanoma skin cancer in its earlier stages so appropriate, effective treatment can be given before it advances. He is joined by Dr. Ariel Ostad, MD, PC, board-certified dermatologist, dermatologic surgeon, and Clinical Associate Professor at the NYU Department of Dermatology who talks about non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) and who is at risk for developing this type of skin cancer.

Dr. Hernan Bazan, CEO and Co-Founder of South Rampart Pharma, a clinical-stage life science company, discusses how the company aims to advance the safe treatment of pain by developing new small-molecule, non-opioid solutions that can overcome many risks associated with current pain medicines, like liver and kidney toxicity. The lead program SRP-3D (Diethylamide [DA]), is currently in a Phase 1 study evaluating the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics with data expected in the second half of 2022. 

Fred Dillon, Head of Advisory Services at Hopelab discusses the launch of imi – a new free, digital, mental health tool designed to support and help LGBTQ+ teens explore and affirm their identity and learn practical ways to cope with sexual and gender minority stress.

Dr. Christopher Thompson, MD, MHES, Director of Endoscopy, Brigham and Women’s Hospital talks about his study on Gastroplasty With Endoscopic Myotomy (GEM): a viable treatment of obesity which was presented at the 2022 Digestive Disease Week (DDW) conference. 

Genevieve Neal-Perry, M.D., Ph.D., Chair, UNC School of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, discusses the data from the Phase 3 SKYLIGHT 1™ 12-week clinical trial and Phase 3 SKYLIGHT 2™ 52-week clinical trial investigating the efficacy and safety of fezolinetant, an investigational oral, nonhormonal compound being studied for the treatment of moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause (VMS). VMS, characterized by hot flashes (also called hot flushes) and/or night sweats, are common symptoms of menopause. The Phase 3 SKYLIGHT 1™ 12-week clinical data was presented at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) 2022 Annual Meeting and the Phase 3 SKYLIGHT 2™ 52-week data was presented at the Endocrine Society (ENDO) 2022 Annual Meeting.

Dr. Hung Ecklund, Medical Director of OB/GYN at ModMed discusses the need to automate OB/GYN care processes. Her specialty deals with a high-touch patient population combined with a physician population that is estimated to shrink by 50% by 2050, and automation can help offset the growing workload on physicians.

Dr. Michael Kelly, Clinical Fellow in Pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital shares more about his research, “Burnout, Disparities, and Outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic” which was recently presented at the American Thoracic Society’s annual scientific meeting. 

When diagnosed with conditions such as cancer and hypertension, standard practice is for patients to learn their prognosis and receive a treatment plan. This is based on a staging system, which looks at how far the disease has progressed. Notably missing from this list of conditions is coronary artery disease (CAD), the number one cause of death in the U.S. In this episode, returning guest Dr. James Min, CEO and founder of Cleerly, the company creating a new standard of precision heart care, discusses a new paper published in the “Journal of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography” proposing a four-stage system for the disease burden of atherosclerotic plaque, the direct cause of CAD, and what it means for future disease treatment.

Dr. Chitkala Kalidas, PhD, Vice President and Global Head, Oncology Regulatory Affairs and Oncology Sustainability at Bayer discusses the Oncology Sustainability Initiative launched in 2021 with the goal of reducing disparities in access to quality cancer care and improving outcomes for patients. This initiative aims to reach 300 million people in underserved communities worldwide by 2030. She talks about the public-private partnerships that she and her team at Bayer have initiated in Egypt, India and Ghana to create equitable models of cancer care.

Dr. Ali Tavakkoli, Chief of the Division of General and GI Surgery, co-director of the Center for Weight Management and Wellness, and director of the minimally invasive surgery fellowship at Brigham and Women’s hospital talks about his research on pre-operative biological markers to improve the accuracy of weight loss prediction calculators, and the important role of ghrelin in driving post-operative outcomes, which was presented at the 2022 Digestive Disease Week (DDW) conference.