INTERVIEWS

Dr. Joe Alvarnas, hematologist-oncologist and VP of Government Affairs at City of Hope, Cancer Treatment and Research Center, shares his expertise on  the drivers of cancer care inequity.    Research shows more than a third of cancer deaths among all U.S. adults  could be prevented  if socioeconomic disparities were eliminated.

Returning guest, Dr. Jan Wehkamp, MD, PhD, Vice President, Gastroenterology Disease Area Leader for the Immunology Therapeutic Area at Janssen Research & Development, LLC discusses new phase 2 TREMFYA ® (guselkumab) data in Crohn’s disease (CD) and new long term pooled analysis of patients with ulcerative colitis and CD treated with STELARA ® (ustekinumab) that was presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2022.

Heather Woolery-Lloyd, MD, Director of the Skin of Color Division for the University of Miami Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery discusses the expansion of the Incyte Ingenuity Award. The expanded 2022 program will seek to positively impact people living with vitiligo by providing funding for innovative ideas from organizations and medical institutions that address unmet needs in the vitiligo community. Vitiligo is a chronic autoimmune condition and is characterized by white patches of skin, also known as depigmentation. Two initiatives will be selected by an independent judging panel to win up to $35,000 and $100,000. Applications are due October 31, 2022 and can be submitted online at www.IncyteIngenuityAwards.com/vitiligo

Ari Toumpas shares her transitioning journey and how she worked with a speech-language pathologist to train her voice to follow more stereotypically feminine voice patterns.

Cancer treatments are advancing and increasing survivorship, but they can also cause unique and serious damage to the heart. These issues can occur within the first few months of treatment or 20 years later. Chris Fine, MD, a cardiologist at National Jewish Health discusses the growing field of cardio-oncology and how it could change the future of cancer care. He talks about how they work directly with the patient and their other cancer care experts to monitor their heart health both during and after treatment.

Chris Hoyt, CEO, and Charbel Moussa, MBBA, PhD, Director of Scientific Advisory Board and co-founder of KeifeRx, an emerging clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, discuss the development of novel and optimized, low-dose, orally delivered tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) to treat neurodegenerative and immune diseases. The indications of focus are Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy Body Dementia, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, MCAS, and Lyme Disease. The Company’s lead and most advanced clinical candidate (Phase III ready) is KFRX01 (Nilotinib BE), an optimized reformulation with improved bioavailability and solubility under development for the treatment of early Alzheimer’s disease. 

Returning guest, ​Dr. Joaquin Mould-Quevedo, ​Global HEOR & Value Strategy Director​ at Seqirus​, ​one of the world’s largest influenza vaccine providers,​ discusses the benefits of real-world evidence (RWE) to ​assess vaccine economic impacts in influenza.​ He talks about the economic burden of seasonal flu on global health care systems, the role of health economics and outcomes research (HEOR) ​and economic modeling in vaccines​, ways RWE and HEOR support National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) around the world, how data is leveraged for country-specific applications​,​​ and more.​ 

Pascale Leroueil, Vice President of Healthcare at the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan discusses a recent study where she and co-authors present a method for estimating the impact of vaccine technologies on vaccination coverage rates. They designed the method to help decision-makers better assess the most value for their money, with the goal of improving vaccine coverage for vulnerable communities. She talks about if the methodology can be applied to other types of vaccine technologies and what the pandemic revealed in terms of vaccine coverage that this research might address.

Ravi Tayi, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer at Endo International, plc, a specialty pharmaceutical company, discusses the alarming results of a recent men’s health survey by Men’s Health (a magazine devoted to men’s health) of just over 1500 men, ages 18-80 where less than half of the men who participated rated their physical, mental, and sexual health as excellent or very good. He talks about Endo’s partnership with Men’s Health Network, Vault Health (offers a virtual healthcare platform), and the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) to form Healthy Now: A Men’s Health Coalition™ — a new resource for men where they can learn about common health conditions that affects men’s physical, mental and sexual health, and where they can book a free virtual consultation in the privacy and comfort of their home. 

Dr. Michael Radin, Executive Director, Medical Affairs, U.S. at Novo Nordisk discusses the launch of a nursing education program with contributions from the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses  Association called “Making the Connection.” The program’s goal is to increase the understanding and support nurses in educating their patients about the link between type 2 diabetes and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD).  Nurses can register for the free program by visiting  DiabetesMakingtheConnection.com. This is a promotional education program; it will not be certified for continuing medical education credit.