Empowered Patient Podcast
Empowered Patient Podcast with Karen Jagoda is a window into the latest innovations in digital health, the application of AI for administrative and clinical uses, the changing dynamic between doctors and patients, personalized medicine, cell and gene therapies, aging in place, wearables and sensors, clinical trials and advances in clinical research, payer trends, transparency in the medical marketplace and challenges for connected health entrepreneurs. This show continues to evolve driven by the convergence of a diverse array of industries.
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Building Foundational AI Infrastructure for Holistic View of Biology with Jean-Philippe Vert Bioptimus TRANSCRIPT
03/26/2026
Building Foundational AI Infrastructure for Holistic View of Biology with Jean-Philippe Vert Bioptimus TRANSCRIPT
Jean-Philippe Vert, the Co-Founder and CEO of Bioptimus, is building a foundational AI model for biology to solve the problem of siloed biomedical research. Key goals are to bridge the translational gaps between drug discovery and development, and between clinical research and real-world patient outcomes, and to redesign clinical trials for greater efficiency and improved results. Creating digital twins of patients is a way to simulate treatment outcomes and create synthetic control arms for clinical trials, ultimately lowering the risk and cost of drug development and enabling the creation of new medicines for a broader range of conditions, including rare diseases. Jean-Philippe explains, "So at its core, what we try to build at Bioptimus is the foundational AI infrastructure for biology. The problem we're trying to solve is that biology is complex and operates across different scales, from genes and proteins to cells, organs, patients, etc. And historically, lots of research, lots of biological, biomedical research has been very siloed, has been focusing on specific aspects of biology, like studying only genes or studying only cells. What we are building at Bioptimus is an AI-intelligent system that can see across all these layers, all of these cases, to get a holistic picture of biology. And it's not only a scientific endeavor, but the reason why it's hard to make a drug today, why so many diseases remain untreated, is that the siloed nature of biomedical research has created difficulties in how we move from research in discovery, like understanding a disease, to making a treatment for the patients." "So we have indeed a model called H-Optimus, which is a foundation model for one type of modality, which is one thing you see in an image. It's for histopathology slides. This is when someone has, for example, a cancer, you take a biopsy and then typically a pathologist looks at the biopsy under the microscope to characterize the disease, to see if there are cancer cells, to see the shape, to see the organization, and so to pose a diagnostic and suggest a treatment. We have trained an AI system that helps pathologists be better because our systems have been trained by looking at billions of such images, and so have a very detailed understanding of the subtle variations that can be observed in images." #Bioptimus #ArtificialIntelligence #DrugDiscovery #Biotechnology #PrecisionMedicine #FoundationModels #BiologyAI #ClinicalTrials #CancerResearch #RareDiseases #DigitalHealth #Innovation
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Building Foundational AI Infrastructure for Holistic View of Biology with Jean-Philippe Vert Bioptimus
03/26/2026
Building Foundational AI Infrastructure for Holistic View of Biology with Jean-Philippe Vert Bioptimus
Jean-Philippe Vert, the Co-Founder and CEO of Bioptimus, is building a foundational AI model for biology to solve the problem of siloed biomedical research. Key goals are to bridge the translational gaps between drug discovery and development, and between clinical research and real-world patient outcomes, and to redesign clinical trials for greater efficiency and improved results. Creating digital twins of patients is a way to simulate treatment outcomes and create synthetic control arms for clinical trials, ultimately lowering the risk and cost of drug development and enabling the creation of new medicines for a broader range of conditions, including rare diseases. Jean-Philippe explains, "So at its core, what we try to build at Bioptimus is the foundational AI infrastructure for biology. The problem we're trying to solve is that biology is complex and operates across different scales, from genes and proteins to cells, organs, patients, etc. And historically, lots of research, lots of biological, biomedical research has been very siloed, has been focusing on specific aspects of biology, like studying only genes or studying only cells. What we are building at Bioptimus is an AI-intelligent system that can see across all these layers, all of these cases, to get a holistic picture of biology. And it's not only a scientific endeavor, but the reason why it's hard to make a drug today, why so many diseases remain untreated, is that the siloed nature of biomedical research has created difficulties in how we move from research in discovery, like understanding a disease, to making a treatment for the patients." "So we have indeed a model called H-Optimus, which is a foundation model for one type of modality, which is one thing you see in an image. It's for histopathology slides. This is when someone has, for example, a cancer, you take a biopsy and then typically a pathologist looks at the biopsy under the microscope to characterize the disease, to see if there are cancer cells, to see the shape, to see the organization, and so to pose a diagnostic and suggest a treatment. We have trained an AI system that helps pathologists be better because our systems have been trained by looking at billions of such images, and so have a very detailed understanding of the subtle variations that can be observed in images." #Bioptimus #ArtificialIntelligence #DrugDiscovery #Biotechnology #PrecisionMedicine #FoundationModels #BiologyAI #ClinicalTrials #CancerResearch #RareDiseases #DigitalHealth #Innovation
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536885
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Drug Targets Iron Dysregulation in Rare Neurodegenerative Disease Multiple System Atrophy with David Stamler Alterity Therapeutics TRANSCRIPT
03/25/2026
Drug Targets Iron Dysregulation in Rare Neurodegenerative Disease Multiple System Atrophy with David Stamler Alterity Therapeutics TRANSCRIPT
David Stamler, CEO of Alterity Therapeutics, is developing a drug to treat multiple system atrophy (MSA), a rare and rapidly progressing neurodegenerative disease that often presents as Parkinson's disease but is distinct and more aggressive. There is no single genetic cause or specific biomarker, making accurate diagnosis a significant challenge. The lead drug is a novel small molecule designed to manage excess reactive iron in the brain, which drives the disease, and may be effective for other neurodegenerative diseases involving iron dysregulation. David explains, "Multiple system atrophy is a rare disease, and that's part of the reason people may not know so much about it. It is a neurodegenerative disease, and as the name implies, there are multiple regions of the brain that are affected, hence the term multiple systems that are governed by those regions of the brain. And as the disease progresses, some of these regions degenerate, and you get abnormal function in various areas." "Now, we like to characterize the disease as a Parkinsonian disorder, which means early on, it can look like Parkinson's disease. And that's kind of a good descriptor to help people understand what it might look like, but it's distinct from Parkinson's disease, and it progresses a lot faster, a lot more rapidly. So it's a disease that people don't know about, probably because no one famous has been diagnosed with MSA, although I'm sure various famous people have probably had the disease and maybe didn't know it." #AlterityTherapeutics #MultipleSystemAtrophy #MSAAwareness #NeurodegenerativeDisease #Biotech #Phase3 #Neurology #MSA #ClinicalTrials #AlterityTherapeutics #ATH434 #Biotech #RareDisease #Neurodegeneration #DrugDevelopment #MedicalBreakthrough #IronChaperone
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536840
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Drug Targets Iron Dysregulation in Rare Neurodegenerative Disease Multiple System Atrophy with David Stamler Alterity Therapeutics
03/25/2026
Drug Targets Iron Dysregulation in Rare Neurodegenerative Disease Multiple System Atrophy with David Stamler Alterity Therapeutics
David Stamler, CEO of Alterity Therapeutics, is developing a drug to treat multiple system atrophy (MSA), a rare and rapidly progressing neurodegenerative disease that often presents as Parkinson's disease but is distinct and more aggressive. There is no single genetic cause or specific biomarker, making accurate diagnosis a significant challenge. The lead drug is a novel small molecule designed to manage excess reactive iron in the brain, which drives the disease, and may be effective for other neurodegenerative diseases involving iron dysregulation. David explains, "Multiple system atrophy is a rare disease, and that's part of the reason people may not know so much about it. It is a neurodegenerative disease, and as the name implies, there are multiple regions of the brain that are affected, hence the term multiple systems that are governed by those regions of the brain. And as the disease progresses, some of these regions degenerate, and you get abnormal function in various areas." "Now, we like to characterize the disease as a Parkinsonian disorder, which means early on, it can look like Parkinson's disease. And that's kind of a good descriptor to help people understand what it might look like, but it's distinct from Parkinson's disease, and it progresses a lot faster, a lot more rapidly. So it's a disease that people don't know about, probably because no one famous has been diagnosed with MSA, although I'm sure various famous people have probably had the disease and maybe didn't know it." #AlterityTherapeutics #MultipleSystemAtrophy #MSAAwareness #NeurodegenerativeDisease #Biotech #Phase3 #Neurology #MSA #ClinicalTrials #AlterityTherapeutics #ATH434 #Biotech #RareDisease #Neurodegeneration #DrugDevelopment #MedicalBreakthrough #IronChaperone
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536830
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Psychedelic Treatment for Adjustment Disorder in Cancer Patients with Greg Mayes Reunion Neuroscience and Dr. Manish Agrawal Sunstone Therapies TRANSCRIPT
03/24/2026
Psychedelic Treatment for Adjustment Disorder in Cancer Patients with Greg Mayes Reunion Neuroscience and Dr. Manish Agrawal Sunstone Therapies TRANSCRIPT
Greg Mayes, President and CEO of Reunion Neuroscience, and Dr. Manish Agrawal, the Co-Founder and CEO of Sunstone Therapies, shine a light on adjustment disorder, a disproportionate emotional or behavioral reaction to a significant life stressor such as a cancer diagnosis. This under-recognized condition lacks FDA-approved treatments and is often managed with SSRIs or talk therapy. The REKINDLE study evaluated the use of a psilocybin analog drug in development for treating adjustment disorder and has shown positive results by integrating emotional treatment into the standard of care for serious illnesses. Greg explains, "In fact, there are no approved investigational assets that had been approved by the FDA for adjustment disorder. But it was an area of exploration that the FDA encouraged us to move into in light of people's disproportionate and really unfortunate reactions in terms of a depressive or anxiolytic reaction to cancer diagnosis or other major medical illness like Parkinson's disease, MS, ALS, or pulmonary fibrosis." Manish elaborates, "Well, usually you have to have had some stress-related event. For example, it could be things like divorce or job loss. But here, specifically, this study is targeting an illness, and the ones that Greg had just listed out, the neurologic conditions, as well as the cancer diagnosis. And then usually it leads to symptoms, intense feelings of sadness or anxiety or hopelessness. You can have a depressed mood with its subtypes with depressed mood. Some people have more anxiety. And so both a stressor and the symptoms that present are associated directly with that. So, for example, for the study, the symptoms of sadness need to be tied to the illness, such as cancer or MS." #ReunionNeuroscience #SunstoneTherapies #AdjustmentDisorder #MentalHealth #REKINDLEStudy #Psychedelics #PsychedelicMedicine #CancerCare #MentalHealth #ClinicalTrials #Psilocybin #Oncology #PatientCare #MedicalInnovation #Neuroscience
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536760
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Psychedelic Treatment for Adjustment Disorder in Cancer Patients with Greg Mayes Reunion Neuroscience and Dr. Manish Agrawal Sunstone Therapies
03/24/2026
Psychedelic Treatment for Adjustment Disorder in Cancer Patients with Greg Mayes Reunion Neuroscience and Dr. Manish Agrawal Sunstone Therapies
Greg Mayes, President and CEO of Reunion Neuroscience, and Dr. Manish Agrawal, the Co-Founder and CEO of Sunstone Therapies, shine a light on adjustment disorder, a disproportionate emotional or behavioral reaction to a significant life stressor such as a cancer diagnosis. This under-recognized condition lacks FDA-approved treatments and is often managed with SSRIs or talk therapy. The REKINDLE study evaluated the use of a psilocybin analog drug in development for treating adjustment disorder and has shown positive results by integrating emotional treatment into the standard of care for serious illnesses. Greg explains, "In fact, there are no approved investigational assets that had been approved by the FDA for adjustment disorder. But it was an area of exploration that the FDA encouraged us to move into in light of people's disproportionate and really unfortunate reactions in terms of a depressive or anxiolytic reaction to cancer diagnosis or other major medical illness like Parkinson's disease, MS, ALS, or pulmonary fibrosis." Manish elaborates, "Well, usually you have to have had some stress-related event. For example, it could be things like divorce or job loss. But here, specifically, this study is targeting an illness, and the ones that Greg had just listed out, the neurologic conditions, as well as the cancer diagnosis. And then usually it leads to symptoms, intense feelings of sadness or anxiety or hopelessness. You can have a depressed mood with its subtypes with depressed mood. Some people have more anxiety. And so both a stressor and the symptoms that present are associated directly with that. So, for example, for the study, the symptoms of sadness need to be tied to the illness, such as cancer or MS." #ReunionNeuroscience #SunstoneTherapies #AdjustmentDisorder #MentalHealth #REKINDLEStudy #Psychedelics #PsychedelicMedicine #CancerCare #MentalHealth #ClinicalTrials #Psilocybin #Oncology #PatientCare #MedicalInnovation #Neuroscience
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536730
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Hospital Drug Diversion Detection and Prevention with Russ Nix and Dr. Stacey McCoy Wolters Kluwer Health TRANSCRIPT
03/23/2026
Hospital Drug Diversion Detection and Prevention with Russ Nix and Dr. Stacey McCoy Wolters Kluwer Health TRANSCRIPT
Russ Nix, Consulting Associate Director, and Dr. Stacey McCoy, Pharmacy Clinical Program Manager for the Clinical Surveillance and Compliance business at Wolters Kluwer Health, highlight the problem of drug diversion in healthcare environments and the shared responsibility to prevent this breach. AI-enabled software is becoming crucial in detecting suspicious patterns, the types of individuals most likely to steal drugs, and gaps in the supply chain from ordering to delivering drugs to the patient. While opioids are the most commonly diverted drugs, motivated by substance abuse and addiction, other medications, including non-controlled substances, insulin, and high-cost cancer drugs, are also at risk. Effective prevention programs focus on a culture in which staff feel safe reporting concerns and seeking help. Russ explains, "Drug diversion is basically when you're in a healthcare system where the medications in that facility are not going to their intended destination. And that's typically what we see most of, a deliberate taking of those medications, whether it was a substance abuse issue or your healthcare practitioners or staff outside of the facility, are taking those medications and basically denying your patients that medication. And it is a pretty significant issue since the opioid crisis, again in the early 2000s or late 1990s." Stacey elaborates, "So ideally, we want to be in a position where we're able to utilize software applications or a mixture of software applications to have oversight of what's being ordered, what's coming in, and what's going on inside our pharmacies, what's inside the machines on each hospital floor. Just imagine you have such a varied audience. Every single hospital floor has 15 or so nurses working. Those nurses need to grab medications from machines, like a vending machine. So the pharmacist is responsible for making sure that's taking place properly." "Then that same team or person was also responsible for making sure that what's removed from the machines truly makes it to the patients in a safe and sound manner. So there are a number of breakpoints within the process that someone has to oversee. Ideally, we'd like to make sure that drug diversion prevention takes place using the most up-to-date software applications that are AI-enabled, and that we have multidisciplinary governance on these teams." #WoltersKluwerHealh #AISurveillance #DrugDiversionPrevention #Sentri7DrugDiverison #PatientSafety #DrugDiversion #HealthcareSecurity #OpioidCrisis #PharmacySafety #HealthcareCompliance #PatientCare #MedicationSafety #HealthcareLeadership #AIinHealthcare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536575
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Hospital Drug Diversion Detection and Prevention with Russ Nix and Dr. Stacey McCoy Wolters Kluwer Health
03/23/2026
Hospital Drug Diversion Detection and Prevention with Russ Nix and Dr. Stacey McCoy Wolters Kluwer Health
Russ Nix, Consulting Associate Director, and Dr. Stacey McCoy, Pharmacy Clinical Program Manager for the Clinical Surveillance and Compliance business at Wolters Kluwer Health, highlight the problem of drug diversion in healthcare environments and the shared responsibility to prevent this breach. AI-enabled software is becoming crucial in detecting suspicious patterns, the types of individuals most likely to steal drugs, and gaps in the supply chain from ordering to delivering drugs to the patient. While opioids are the most commonly diverted drugs, motivated by substance abuse and addiction, other medications, including non-controlled substances, insulin, and high-cost cancer drugs, are also at risk. Effective prevention programs focus on a culture in which staff feel safe reporting concerns and seeking help. Russ explains, "Drug diversion is basically when you're in a healthcare system where the medications in that facility are not going to their intended destination. And that's typically what we see most of, a deliberate taking of those medications, whether it was a substance abuse issue or your healthcare practitioners or staff outside of the facility, are taking those medications and basically denying your patients that medication. And it is a pretty significant issue since the opioid crisis, again in the early 2000s or late 1990s." Stacey elaborates, "So ideally, we want to be in a position where we're able to utilize software applications or a mixture of software applications to have oversight of what's being ordered, what's coming in, and what's going on inside our pharmacies, what's inside the machines on each hospital floor. Just imagine you have such a varied audience. Every single hospital floor has 15 or so nurses working. Those nurses need to grab medications from machines, like a vending machine. So the pharmacist is responsible for making sure that's taking place properly." "Then that same team or person was also responsible for making sure that what's removed from the machines truly makes it to the patients in a safe and sound manner. So there are a number of breakpoints within the process that someone has to oversee. Ideally, we'd like to make sure that drug diversion prevention takes place using the most up-to-date software applications that are AI-enabled, and that we have multidisciplinary governance on these teams." #WoltersKluwerHealh #AISurveillance #DrugDiversionPrevention #Sentri7DrugDiverison #PatientSafety #DrugDiversion #HealthcareSecurity #OpioidCrisis #PharmacySafety #HealthcareCompliance #PatientCare #MedicationSafety #HealthcareLeadership #AIinHealthcare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536540
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Advancing AI in Patient-Centered Blood Cancer Care with Meghan Gutierrez Lymphoma Research Foundation and Jennifer Branstetter BeOne Medicines TRANSCRIPT
03/23/2026
Advancing AI in Patient-Centered Blood Cancer Care with Meghan Gutierrez Lymphoma Research Foundation and Jennifer Branstetter BeOne Medicines TRANSCRIPT
Meghan Gutierrez, CEO of the Lymphoma Research Foundation, and Jennifer Branstetter, the Executive Director, North America Corporate Affairs at BeOne Medicines, join me to discuss the growing use of AI in patient care with a specific focus on individuals with lymphoma and other blood cancers. Emphasis is on the necessity of a collaborative, patient-centric approach to developing AI tools, bringing together patient advocacy organizations, healthcare professionals, and pharma partners to provide accurate information to patients. The goal is to serve a diverse population by providing personalized, accessible information to help patients have more meaningful discussions with their healthcare providers, not to replace the clinician's role. Jen explains, "We know that tens of millions of people are using AI tools in general, like ChatGPT, for health questions, including patients with blood cancers like chronic lymphocytic leukemia or CLL, they're all turning to the different AI tools that are out there. And from our perspective, we see this continuous growth of use, we want to make sure that the right healthcare information is getting fed into those AI resources and tools so that patients are getting the most accurate information possible." Meg elaborates, "Many patients are using these AI tools to make sense of everything from their PET scans to their blood results, to some of the treatment language they receive in their clinician’s or doctor's office. And one of the things that I heard recently from a cancer patient who had uploaded his scans and some test results into an AI platform. And he called me incredibly concerned. He was very concerned about his prognosis and the limited treatment options that he believed were available to him." "So when I pressed further, I found out that this AI platform was the only source of information that he had. So I became concerned when I recognized that the information he received was antiquated. So the treatment results and some of the information he was working from in this incredibly anxious and anxiety-provoking moment were 10 years old. And so in this case, antiquated information was as dangerous as inaccurate information. And both of these remain top concerns at the Lymphoma Research Foundation. And I think across our sector, as we see more and more patients using these tools and platforms to help educate them about their disease and their treatment options." #LymphomaResearchFoundation #LRF #BeOneMedicines #LymphomaAwareness #AIinHealthcare #PatientAdvocacy #BloodCancer #HealthcareInnovation #PatientEmpowerment #PrecisionMedicine #CLL #HealthTech #CancerCare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536380
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Advancing AI in Patient-Centered Blood Cancer Care with Meghan Gutierrez Lymphoma Research Foundation and Jennifer Branstetter BeOne Medicines
03/23/2026
Advancing AI in Patient-Centered Blood Cancer Care with Meghan Gutierrez Lymphoma Research Foundation and Jennifer Branstetter BeOne Medicines
Meghan Gutierrez, CEO of the Lymphoma Research Foundation, and Jennifer Branstetter, the Executive Director, North America Corporate Affairs at BeOne Medicines, join me to discuss the growing use of AI in patient care with a specific focus on individuals with lymphoma and other blood cancers. Emphasis is on the necessity of a collaborative, patient-centric approach to developing AI tools, bringing together patient advocacy organizations, healthcare professionals, and pharma partners to provide accurate information to patients. The goal is to serve a diverse population by providing personalized, accessible information to help patients have more meaningful discussions with their healthcare providers, not to replace the clinician's role. Jen explains, "We know that tens of millions of people are using AI tools in general, like ChatGPT, for health questions, including patients with blood cancers like chronic lymphocytic leukemia or CLL, they're all turning to the different AI tools that are out there. And from our perspective, we see this continuous growth of use, we want to make sure that the right healthcare information is getting fed into those AI resources and tools so that patients are getting the most accurate information possible." Meg elaborates, "Many patients are using these AI tools to make sense of everything from their PET scans to their blood results, to some of the treatment language they receive in their clinician’s or doctor's office. And one of the things that I heard recently from a cancer patient who had uploaded his scans and some test results into an AI platform. And he called me incredibly concerned. He was very concerned about his prognosis and the limited treatment options that he believed were available to him." "So when I pressed further, I found out that this AI platform was the only source of information that he had. So I became concerned when I recognized that the information he received was antiquated. So the treatment results and some of the information he was working from in this incredibly anxious and anxiety-provoking moment were 10 years old. And so in this case, antiquated information was as dangerous as inaccurate information. And both of these remain top concerns at the Lymphoma Research Foundation. And I think across our sector, as we see more and more patients using these tools and platforms to help educate them about their disease and their treatment options." #LymphomaResearchFoundation #LRF #BeOneMedicines #LymphomaAwareness #AIinHealthcare #PatientAdvocacy #BloodCancer #HealthcareInnovation #PatientEmpowerment #PrecisionMedicine #CLL #HealthTech #CancerCare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40536345
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Cell Therapy Leverages Power of Regulatory T-Cells to Target Root Cause of Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Mike McCullar RegCell TRANSCRIPT
03/19/2026
Cell Therapy Leverages Power of Regulatory T-Cells to Target Root Cause of Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Mike McCullar RegCell TRANSCRIPT
Dr. Mike McCullar, CEO of RegCell, is developing a novel cell therapy to treat autoimmune diseases that specifically addresses the loss of tolerance, in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissues. This approach contrasts with current treatments, which broadly suppress the immune system and may cause side effects. The key goals of the therapy are to achieve long-term disease control and restore the immune system's natural balance. The company's manufacturing process is designed to simplify cell therapies, making them more affordable and accessible to a broader population of autoimmune patients. Mike explains, "The real driver of immunity, we believe, is what's called loss of tolerance, which is a system in our bodies that protects us from bad immune cells that attack our tissues. So that's a fundamental limitation in biology, and there really is not a curated treatment at this point. So our view has really been to try to restore the natural balance of our immune system by regulatory T cells, which are an indispensable non-redundant cell type to maintain tolerance against our autoimmune disorders. So we think the current treatments really don't address these challenges. They are broadly suppressing the immune system, and they don't offer curative potential." "We've been using the same kinds of drugs for the immune disease for about three to five years, and they will broadly suppress the immune system. They are really unable to distinguish between a good immune cell and a bad immune cell. And I think that's the fundamental limitation of how these drugs work. They could be very affected, but they do really broadly suppress the immune system in an indiscriminate way." #RegCell #AutoimmuneHepatitis #Biotechnology #MedicalResearch#AutoimmuneDiseases #CellTherapy #PrecisionMedicine #Immunology #Biotech #RegulatoryTCells #Innovation #HealthcareTechnology #ClinicalTrials
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417795
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Cell Therapy Leverages Power of Regulatory T-Cells to Target Root Cause of Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Mike McCullar RegCell
03/19/2026
Cell Therapy Leverages Power of Regulatory T-Cells to Target Root Cause of Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Mike McCullar RegCell
Dr. Mike McCullar, CEO of RegCell, is developing a novel cell therapy to treat autoimmune diseases that specifically addresses the loss of tolerance, in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissues. This approach contrasts with current treatments, which broadly suppress the immune system and may cause side effects. The key goals of the therapy are to achieve long-term disease control and restore the immune system's natural balance. The company's manufacturing process is designed to simplify cell therapies, making them more affordable and accessible to a broader population of autoimmune patients. Mike explains, "The real driver of immunity, we believe, is what's called loss of tolerance, which is a system in our bodies that protects us from bad immune cells that attack our tissues. So that's a fundamental limitation in biology, and there really is not a curated treatment at this point. So our view has really been to try to restore the natural balance of our immune system by regulatory T cells, which are an indispensable non-redundant cell type to maintain tolerance against our autoimmune disorders. So we think the current treatments really don't address these challenges. They are broadly suppressing the immune system, and they don't offer curative potential." "We've been using the same kinds of drugs for the immune disease for about three to five years, and they will broadly suppress the immune system. They are really unable to distinguish between a good immune cell and a bad immune cell. And I think that's the fundamental limitation of how these drugs work. They could be very affected, but they do really broadly suppress the immune system in an indiscriminate way." #RegCell #AutoimmuneHepatitis #Biotechnology #MedicalResearch#AutoimmuneDiseases #CellTherapy #PrecisionMedicine #Immunology #Biotech #RegulatoryTCells #Innovation #HealthcareTechnology #ClinicalTrials
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417735
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Specialized Healthcare Financing Expanding Access to Care with Amy Mendoza Alphaeon Patient Financing TRANSCRIPT
03/19/2026
Specialized Healthcare Financing Expanding Access to Care with Amy Mendoza Alphaeon Patient Financing TRANSCRIPT
Amy Mendoza, Chief Marketing Officer at Alphaeon Patient Financing, highlights the advantages of working with a finance company that provides options for treatments in cosmetic, dental, vision, audiology, and veterinary care. This is an approach for patients who might delay or forgo treatment and preventive care due to cost, including those with average credit or who need subprime options. Working with providers, Alphaeon helps grow their practices and improve patient experience and outcomes. Amy explains, "I think the most charming and attractive part of Altheon in healthcare is that it is opening access and providing solutions for patient financing. This includes access to treatments that providers can offer in healthcare markets, including cosmetic, dental, vision, audiology, and now veterinary care." "Financing is access. And so it's not that patients lack a desire for care, they're lacking affordable pathways. And so, being able to deliver and present the right financing solutions opened the door to preventive care before something becomes urgent and to completing full treatment plans instead of piecemeal care. And then maybe more especially impactful for middle-income patients and families and patients without robust insurance benefits. So when patients can say yes to care earlier, outcomes improve, and that's clinically and financially." "The setup is pretty straightforward, and the reality is the fees and terms are much more friendly, giving them the opportunity to open up a revolving access or line of credit that they can apply to taking care of their pet within the family, or maybe dental or vision, and support a handful of members within the immediate family." #Alphaeon #PatientFinancing #HealthcareFinancing #PatientAccess #HealthTech #MedicalFinancing #HealthcareInnovation #PatientCare #HealthcareLeadership #DigitalHealth #FinTech #Healthcare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417695
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Specialized Healthcare Financing Expanding Access to Care with Amy Mendoza Alphaeon Patient Financing
03/19/2026
Specialized Healthcare Financing Expanding Access to Care with Amy Mendoza Alphaeon Patient Financing
Amy Mendoza, Chief Marketing Officer at Alphaeon Patient Financing, highlights the advantages of working with a finance company that provides options for treatments in cosmetic, dental, vision, audiology, and veterinary care. This is an approach for patients who might delay or forgo treatment and preventive care due to cost, including those with average credit or who need subprime options. Working with providers, Alphaeon helps grow their practices and improve patient experience and outcomes. Amy explains, "I think the most charming and attractive part of Altheon in healthcare is that it is opening access and providing solutions for patient financing. This includes access to treatments that providers can offer in healthcare markets, including cosmetic, dental, vision, audiology, and now veterinary care." "Financing is access. And so it's not that patients lack a desire for care, they're lacking affordable pathways. And so, being able to deliver and present the right financing solutions opened the door to preventive care before something becomes urgent and to completing full treatment plans instead of piecemeal care. And then maybe more especially impactful for middle-income patients and families and patients without robust insurance benefits. So when patients can say yes to care earlier, outcomes improve, and that's clinically and financially." "The setup is pretty straightforward, and the reality is the fees and terms are much more friendly, giving them the opportunity to open up a revolving access or line of credit that they can apply to taking care of their pet within the family, or maybe dental or vision, and support a handful of members within the immediate family." #Alphaeon #PatientFinancing #HealthcareFinancing #PatientAccess #HealthTech #MedicalFinancing #HealthcareInnovation #PatientCare #HealthcareLeadership #DigitalHealth #FinTech #Healthcare
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417665
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Psychedelic Medicine Effectively Treats PTSD and Depression with Dane Stevens Optimi Health TRANSCRIPT
03/18/2026
Psychedelic Medicine Effectively Treats PTSD and Depression with Dane Stevens Optimi Health TRANSCRIPT
Dane Stevens, Founder, CEO, and Director at Optimi Health, a Canadian company that manufactures MDMA and naturally derived psilocybin from mushrooms for use in therapy for PTSD and treatment-resistant depression. These psychedelic-based mental health treatments are being used in the regulated market in Australia and in Special Access programs in Canada, and showing real-world evidence of a positive impact. Dane emphasizes the importance of a clinical setting for the administration of psychedelic medicines and integration with traditional therapy. Dane explains, "We exist to support the responsible use of psychedelic medicines within regulated healthcare systems. We are a manufacturer of both MDMA and psilocybin, and our company exports those products to the only truly regulated market in the world right now, which is Australia. There, our MDMA is being prescribed for PTSD, and our psilocybin, naturally derived psilocybin extract, is being prescribed for treatment-resistant depression. And so we're not your classic drug developer. We're on a mission to be in the clinic and inpatient today, and that's where we are." "Right now, they're still scheduled substances, but in Canada specifically, you have what's called the Special Access Program, where if you're suffering from end-of-life distress or PTSD in a very serious way or treatment-resistant depression, you can apply directly to the health minister for an exemption to access psychedelics. But they are still scheduled and restricted." "If you're looking at just the Australian model in Australia, they rescheduled specifically MDMA for the use in PTSD treatment. Specifically, around psilocybin, it's only to be used for treatment-resistant depression. And so, when we, as a company, actually export directly from Canada to Australia, the permits say it's only to be used within that framework. So it's not a take-home medicine, it's all done within the guidance of your healthcare professional at the clinic." #OptimiHealth #PsychedelicMedicine #MentalHealth #PTSD #Depression #Innovation #Healthcare #Australia #TreatmentResistantDepression #Psilocybin #MDMA #PsilocybinTherapy #MDMATherapy #MentalHealthInnovation #FDAApproval #HealthPolicy #CanadaHealth #ClinicalResearch #RealWorldEvidence
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417600
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Psychedelic Medicine Effectively Treats PTSD and Depression with Dane Stevens Optimi Health
03/18/2026
Psychedelic Medicine Effectively Treats PTSD and Depression with Dane Stevens Optimi Health
Dane Stevens, Founder, CEO, and Director at Optimi Health, a Canadian company that manufactures MDMA and naturally derived psilocybin from mushrooms for use in therapy for PTSD and treatment-resistant depression. These psychedelic-based mental health treatments are being used in the regulated market in Australia and in Special Access programs in Canada, and showing real-world evidence of a positive impact. Dane emphasizes the importance of a clinical setting for the administration of psychedelic medicines and integration with traditional therapy. Dane explains, "We exist to support the responsible use of psychedelic medicines within regulated healthcare systems. We are a manufacturer of both MDMA and psilocybin, and our company exports those products to the only truly regulated market in the world right now, which is Australia. There, our MDMA is being prescribed for PTSD, and our psilocybin, naturally derived psilocybin extract, is being prescribed for treatment-resistant depression. And so we're not your classic drug developer. We're on a mission to be in the clinic and inpatient today, and that's where we are." "Right now, they're still scheduled substances, but in Canada specifically, you have what's called the Special Access Program, where if you're suffering from end-of-life distress or PTSD in a very serious way or treatment-resistant depression, you can apply directly to the health minister for an exemption to access psychedelics. But they are still scheduled and restricted." "If you're looking at just the Australian model in Australia, they rescheduled specifically MDMA for the use in PTSD treatment. Specifically, around psilocybin, it's only to be used for treatment-resistant depression. And so, when we, as a company, actually export directly from Canada to Australia, the permits say it's only to be used within that framework. So it's not a take-home medicine, it's all done within the guidance of your healthcare professional at the clinic." #OptimiHealth #PsychedelicMedicine #MentalHealth #PTSD #Depression #Innovation #Healthcare #Australia #TreatmentResistantDepression #Psilocybin #MDMA #PsilocybinTherapy #MDMATherapy #MentalHealthInnovation #FDAApproval #HealthPolicy #CanadaHealth #ClinicalResearch #RealWorldEvidence
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417570
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Fiduciary Model Lowers Drug Costs Versus Traditional PBMs with Renzo Luzzatti, US-Rx Care TRANSCRIPT
03/17/2026
Fiduciary Model Lowers Drug Costs Versus Traditional PBMs with Renzo Luzzatti, US-Rx Care TRANSCRIPT
Renzo Luzzatti, Founder and CEO of US-Rx Care, discusses the role and practice of the Pharmacy Benefits Managers and the advantages of working with a company that uses a fiduciary model. Inherent conflicts of interest in the traditional PBM model, such as manufacturer rebates and requirements to use PBM-owned pharmacies, drive up prescription drug costs. US-Rx Care eliminates these conflicts by charging a flat administrative fee, with its sole incentive to lower drug costs for the plan and its members. Renxo explains, "We've been around since 2007. We do have about 5 million lives under management, both self-funded employers, which is the bulk of our business. Then we also tap into Medicare health plans and have some programs and offerings that we assist there to lower costs and improve the quality of care. Our approach is unique in that we've taken a fiduciary stance from day one. We can talk about that in a little bit. It is a legal term. It's defined under ERISA, which governs health plans. They have a fiduciary duty to the plan, the members, and the management of the plan assets. And the industry as a whole has shied away from any fiduciary obligation whatsoever, in part because it's rife with conflicts of interest, and you cannot have conflicts of interest as a fiduciary." "That is really at the core of all of the issues and complaints that we're hearing about PBMs - they’re driving up the cost of prescriptions rather than having the intended effect, which is to reduce the cost of prescriptions. And I would say in the last four or five years, employers have really started to ask the right questions because they're becoming more and more educated." "For folks like us, we're growing like crazy because the industry finally gets that. The deal that they were getting through their traditional model is not so good. The other thing is when we move to a fiduciary model, savings are typically in the realm of 30% to 50% in the first year, and then we typically see additional savings in year two and three, and then after that, the goal and the intent, which we've been successful at, is to keep costs stable." #USRxCare #PBM #PharmacyBenefits #EmployeeBenefits #HealthcareCosts #FiduciaryResponsibility #BenefitsConsulting #HealthcareTransparency #CostContainment #SelfFundedEmployers #HealthcareReform
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417290
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Fiduciary Model Lowers Drug Costs Versus Traditional PBMs with Renzo Luzzatti, US-Rx Care
03/17/2026
Fiduciary Model Lowers Drug Costs Versus Traditional PBMs with Renzo Luzzatti, US-Rx Care
Renzo Luzzatti, Founder and CEO of US-Rx Care, discusses the role and practice of the Pharmacy Benefits Managers and the advantages of working with a company that uses a fiduciary model. Inherent conflicts of interest in the traditional PBM model, such as manufacturer rebates and requirements to use PBM-owned pharmacies, drive up prescription drug costs. US-Rx Care eliminates these conflicts by charging a flat administrative fee with its sole incentive to lower drug costs for the plan and its members. Renxo explains, "We've been around since 2007. We do have about 5 million lives under management, both self-funded employers, which is the bulk of our business. Then we also tap into Medicare health plans and have some programs and offerings that we assist there to lower costs and improve the quality of care. Our approach is unique in that we've taken a fiduciary stance from day one. We can talk about that in a little bit. It is a legal term. It's defined under ERISA, which governs health plans. They have a fiduciary duty to the plan, the members, and the management of the plan assets. And the industry as a whole has shied away from any fiduciary obligation whatsoever, in part because it's rife with conflicts of interest, and you cannot have conflicts of interest as a fiduciary." "That is really at the core of all of the issues and complaints that we're hearing about PBMs - they’re driving up the cost of prescriptions rather than having the intended effect, which is to reduce the cost of prescriptions. And I would say in the last four or five years, employers have really started to ask the right questions because they're becoming more and more educated." "For folks like us, we're growing like crazy because the industry finally gets that. The deal that they were getting through their traditional model is not so good. The other thing is when we move to a fiduciary model, savings are typically in the realm of 30% to 50% in the first year, and then we typically see additional savings in year two and three, and then after that, the goal and the intent, which we've been successful at, is to keep costs stable." #USRxCare #PBM #PharmacyBenefits #EmployeeBenefits #HealthcareCosts #FiduciaryResponsibility #BenefitsConsulting #HealthcareTransparency #CostContainment #SelfFundedEmployers #HealthcareReform
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40418210
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Avoiding Critical Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Healthcare Systems with Kory Daniels LevelBlue TRANSCRIPT
03/16/2026
Avoiding Critical Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Healthcare Systems with Kory Daniels LevelBlue TRANSCRIPT
Kory Daniels, Chief Security and Trust Officer at LevelBlue, discusses the multifaceted cybersecurity challenges in the healthcare industry and the risks posed by legacy systems not designed for secure internet connectivity. Artificial intelligence is being used successfully to defend against cyber attacks, while threat actors are using AI without ethical constraints to launch sophisticated attacks. Managing cybersecurity includes using digital twins to model vulnerabilities and to develop strategies for identity and access management for human and non-human identities, such as robots and AI agents. Kory explains, "We must recognize that we're not starting from a clean slate - we have a lot of decades-old systems operating both within the physical footprint of the healthcare and hospital facility and in record retention and data management. Many organizations are looking at how to get ahead in identifying what needs to happen to embrace new technology and much of the innovation. At the same time, being conscious and cognizant of opportunities to retrofit, taking what's there already today and making it internet-connected as an example, making it Internet of Things-connected so that devices that weren't purpose-built to communicate to the internet now can communicate to the internet, but it creates some risks and it poses some challenges." "We highlighted that some of these legacy systems or initial systems that have been in the organization for years, some 10 years or more, were not necessarily purpose-built or designed at the time of manufacturing, nor with the software needed for those tools to operate with current speed, expectations, and requirements. Healthcare entities are engaging both patients and supporting care doctors and patient care professionals in 2026 and beyond." #LevelBlue #HealthcareCybersecurity #DigitalTransformation #AIinHealthcare #LegacySystems #PatientSafety #CyberThreats #HealthTech #DataSecurity #MedicalDevices #DigitalHealth #HealthcareIT #CyberDefense #HealthcareInnovation #RiskManagement #ComplianceMatters
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417185
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Avoiding Critical Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Healthcare Systems with Kory Daniels LevelBlue
03/16/2026
Avoiding Critical Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Healthcare Systems with Kory Daniels LevelBlue
Kory Daniels, Chief Security and Trust Officer at LevelBlue, discusses the multifaceted cybersecurity challenges in the healthcare industry and the risks posed by legacy systems not designed for secure internet connectivity. Artificial intelligence is being used successfully to defend against cyber attacks, while threat actors are using AI without ethical constraints to launch sophisticated attacks. Managing cybersecurity includes using digital twins to model vulnerabilities and to develop strategies for identity and access management for human and non-human identities, such as robots and AI agents. Kory explains, "We must recognize that we're not starting from a clean slate - we have a lot of decades-old systems operating both within the physical footprint of the healthcare and hospital facility and in record retention and data management. Many organizations are looking at how to get ahead in identifying what needs to happen to embrace new technology and much of the innovation. At the same time, being conscious and cognizant of opportunities to retrofit, taking what's there already today and making it internet-connected as an example, making it Internet of Things-connected so that devices that weren't purpose-built to communicate to the internet now can communicate to the internet, but it creates some risks and it poses some challenges." "We highlighted that some of these legacy systems or initial systems that have been in the organization for years, some 10 years or more, were not necessarily purpose-built or designed at the time of manufacturing, nor with the software needed for those tools to operate with current speed, expectations, and requirements. Healthcare entities are engaging both patients and supporting care doctors and patient care professionals in 2026 and beyond." #LevelBlue #HealthcareCybersecurity #DigitalTransformation #AIinHealthcare #LegacySystems #PatientSafety #CyberThreats #HealthTech #DataSecurity #MedicalDevices #DigitalHealth #HealthcareIT #CyberDefense #HealthcareInnovation #RiskManagement #ComplianceMatters
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40417170
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AgeTech Platform Focuses on Human-Centered Care for the Aging Population with Chase Idleman Arlow TRANSCRIPT
03/12/2026
AgeTech Platform Focuses on Human-Centered Care for the Aging Population with Chase Idleman Arlow TRANSCRIPT
Chase Idleman, Chief Executive Officer of Arlow, is leveraging emerging AgeTech and the longevity economy to develop solutions for an aging population, their families, and caregivers. With a human-centered approach to the entire aging process, Arlow uses AI to create a system for action for adults over 65 and their support networks. The main goal is to make tasks like care coordination, document management, medication adherence, and detecting changes in behavior and physical abilities easier. Chase explains, "AgeTech is more around the people in the population. So if you look at aging, it is not one point in time, but is truly a continuum and impacts so many people. It's not just the person who's aging, but also the family members and the entire circle of care around them. So, AgeTech is that kind of emerging field, which is how I try to differentiate it. Again, it's not product-centric, but it is really human-centric over a continuum of time." "What we felt was the biggest opportunity was not only creating a solution for older adults, but creating a solution for the circle of care, the people every single day who are helping those older adults. And in parallel, we really started to lean in on this employer front with the workforce. So in the workforce environment, it's pretty interesting, 25% of FMLA is for caregiving. And right now, there's not a ton of solutions that can support them. So those workers are essentially the circle of care." #Arlow #AgeTech #AI #Healthcare #Aging #Innovation #DigitalHealth #Longevity #Caregiving #HealthTech #SeniorCare #FamilyCaregivers #CaregiverBurnout #OlderAdults #EmployeeBenefits #EmployeeAssistantPrograms
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346900
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AgeTech Platform Focuses on Human-Centered Care for the Aging Population with Chase Idleman Arlow
03/12/2026
AgeTech Platform Focuses on Human-Centered Care for the Aging Population with Chase Idleman Arlow
Chase Idleman, Chief Executive Officer of Arlow, is leveraging emerging AgeTech and the longevity economy to develop solutions for an aging population, their families, and caregivers. With a human-centered approach to the entire aging process, Arlow uses AI to create a system for action for adults over 65 and their support networks. The main goal is to make tasks like care coordination, document management, medication adherence, and detecting changes in behavior and physical abilities easier. Chase explains, "AgeTech is more around the people in the population. So if you look at aging, it is not one point in time, but is truly a continuum and impacts so many people. It's not just the person who's aging, but also the family members and the entire circle of care around them. So, AgeTech is that kind of emerging field, which is how I try to differentiate it. Again, it's not product-centric, but it is really human-centric over a continuum of time." "What we felt was the biggest opportunity was not only creating a solution for older adults, but creating a solution for the circle of care, the people every single day who are helping those older adults. And in parallel, we really started to lean in on this employer front with the workforce. So in the workforce environment, it's pretty interesting, 25% of FMLA is for caregiving. And right now, there's not a ton of solutions that can support them. So those workers are essentially the circle of care." #Arlow #AgeTech #AI #Healthcare #Aging #Innovation #DigitalHealth #Longevity #Caregiving #HealthTech #SeniorCare #FamilyCaregivers #CaregiverBurnout #OlderAdults #EmployeeBenefits #EmployeeAssistantPrograms
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346865
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Developing Accessible Virus-Specific T-Cell Therapies to Treat Solid Tumors with Dr. Ivan Horak Tikva Allocell TRANSCRIPT
03/12/2026
Developing Accessible Virus-Specific T-Cell Therapies to Treat Solid Tumors with Dr. Ivan Horak Tikva Allocell TRANSCRIPT
Dr. Ivan Horak, Founder and CEO of Tikva Allocell, is focused on next-generation allogeneic cell therapies using modified T-cells from healthy donors to make these therapies more scalable, accessible, and affordable. Using virus-specific T-cells, this approach is showing effectiveness against solid tumors, which are difficult for traditional CAR-T therapies to treat. The primary target is an antigen found particularly in Epstein-Barr virus-associated malignancies and is showing potential for treating autoimmune diseases as well as cancer. Ivan explains, "Cell therapy has a long history. We started with many scientists, but probably the godfather of the technology, Zelig Eshhar, who's not with us anymore. He passed away last year. The idea behind that was to use patient cells and modify them and use them as a fighter against the cancer. But over time, we realized over the last two decades that it's very useful, very successful in the treatment of hematologic malignancies, but it's very expensive and labor-intensive. The question was how to enhance this technology and bring it to more patients in a friendly and affordable way." "The second generation are therapies where we are using healthy people's cells, primarily T-cells, but can be NK cells, can be gamma-delta T-cells. And these cells are being modified, and they are infused into a patient. The advantage of this technology is that patients are identified, and the provider can request the cell from different biotechnology companies, which can be available within the next few days, because from one healthy donor, you can make multiple doses for patients." #TikvaAllocell #CellTherapy #CancerResearch #Immunotherapy #Biotechnology #Biotech #Innovation #ClinicalTrials #AllogeneicTherapy #Allogeneic #SolidTumors #NextGenTherapy #PrecisionMedicine #CellTherapy #CART #Oncology #ImmuneOncology #CellandGeneTherapy
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346510
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Developing Accessible Virus-Specific T-Cell Therapies to Treat Solid Tumors with Dr. Ivan Horak Tikva Allocell
03/12/2026
Developing Accessible Virus-Specific T-Cell Therapies to Treat Solid Tumors with Dr. Ivan Horak Tikva Allocell
Dr. Ivan Horak, Founder and CEO of Tikva Allocell, is focused on next-generation allogeneic cell therapies using modified T-cells from healthy donors to make these therapies more scalable, accessible, and affordable. Using virus-specific T-cells, this approach is showing effectiveness against solid tumors, which are difficult for traditional CAR-T therapies to treat. The primary target is an antigen found particularly in Epstein-Barr virus-associated malignancies and is showing potential for treating autoimmune diseases as well as cancer. Ivan explains, "Cell therapy has a long history. We started with many scientists, but probably the godfather of the technology, Zelig Eshhar, who's not with us anymore. He passed away last year. The idea behind that was to use patient cells and modify them and use them as a fighter against the cancer. But over time, we realized over the last two decades that it's very useful, very successful in the treatment of hematologic malignancies, but it's very expensive and labor-intensive. The question was how to enhance this technology and bring it to more patients in a friendly and affordable way." "The second generation are therapies where we are using healthy people's cells, primarily T-cells, but can be NK cells, can be gamma-delta T-cells. And these cells are being modified, and they are infused into a patient. The advantage of this technology is that patients are identified, and the provider can request the cell from different biotechnology companies, which can be available within the next few days, because from one healthy donor, you can make multiple doses for patients." #TikvaAllocell #CellTherapy #CancerResearch #Immunotherapy #Biotechnology #Biotech #Innovation #ClinicalTrials #AllogeneicTherapy #Allogeneic #SolidTumors #NextGenTherapy #PrecisionMedicine #CellTherapy #CART #Oncology #ImmuneOncology #CellandGeneTherapy
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346490
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AI Platform for Predicting Clinical Trial Success Transforming the Financing of Drug Development with Tyrone Lam GATC Health TRANSCRIPT
03/11/2026
AI Platform for Predicting Clinical Trial Success Transforming the Financing of Drug Development with Tyrone Lam GATC Health TRANSCRIPT
Tyrone Lam, is Chief Business Development Officer at GATC Health, a company that has developed a predictive AI model to derisk and accelerate drug discovery and development. A significant partnership with Lloyd's of London to use this technology to underwrite insurance for clinical trials enables the insurer to base financing decisions on objective reports that predict a drug's safety and efficacy with high accuracy. There is potential for this technology to become a standard for biotech investment, reducing reliance on animal testing and enabling more efficient development of drugs for smaller patient populations. Tyrone explains, "GATC Health is a technology company that is de-risking and accelerating the drug discovery and drug development process. So at a higher level, our mission is to take as much of the financial and scientific risk out of the drug discovery business as possible, which would enable better, safer, and more available drugs to be available for humans." "Our overall platform is called Operon that has literally hundreds of AI models built in that basically do three things. One is that we're able to discover and validate in silico the targets in the body associated with a particular disease. And then the second piece of our platform broadly is the ability to generate novel compounds to treat those diseases. And then we created off of Operon an independent validation that would run in silico, like an AI-generated clinical trial to understand how those novel drugs would perform against those targets in human physiology." "That third part of the platform is where we created a product called Derisq, and that is an independent, objective report that we can run on other people's drugs, biotech pharma's drug candidates, to give them a very rapid indication of how that drug's going to perform in a human clinical trial." #GATCHealth #DrugDiscovery #AIinHealthcare #PharmaInnovation #ClinicalTrials #HealthTech #MedicalAI #Biotechnology #PrecisionMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #FutureOfMedicine #DrugDevelopment #AIplatform #DueDiligence #DeriskingBiotech #Derisq #CapitalEfficiency #RiskIntelligence #BiotechInvesting
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346405
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AI Platform for Predicting Clinical Trial Success Transforming the Financing of Drug Development with Tyrone Lam GATC Health
03/11/2026
AI Platform for Predicting Clinical Trial Success Transforming the Financing of Drug Development with Tyrone Lam GATC Health
Tyrone Lam, is Chief Business Development Officer at GATC Health, a company that has developed a predictive AI model to derisk and accelerate drug discovery and development. A significant partnership with Lloyd's of London to use this technology to underwrite insurance for clinical trials enables the insurer to base financing decisions on objective reports that predict a drug's safety and efficacy with high accuracy. There is potential for this technology to become a standard for biotech investment, reducing reliance on animal testing and enabling more efficient development of drugs for smaller patient populations. Tyrone explains, "GATC Health is a technology company that is de-risking and accelerating the drug discovery and drug development process. So at a higher level, our mission is to take as much of the financial and scientific risk out of the drug discovery business as possible, which would enable better, safer, and more available drugs to be available for humans." "Our overall platform is called Operon that has literally hundreds of AI models built in that basically do three things. One is that we're able to discover and validate in silico the targets in the body associated with a particular disease. And then the second piece of our platform broadly is the ability to generate novel compounds to treat those diseases. And then we created off of Operon an independent validation that would run in silico, like an AI-generated clinical trial to understand how those novel drugs would perform against those targets in human physiology." "That third part of the platform is where we created a product called Derisq, and that is an independent, objective report that we can run on other people's drugs, biotech pharma's drug candidates, to give them a very rapid indication of how that drug's going to perform in a human clinical trial." #GATCHealth #DrugDiscovery #AIinHealthcare #PharmaInnovation #ClinicalTrials #HealthTech #MedicalAI #Biotechnology #PrecisionMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #FutureOfMedicine #DrugDevelopment #AIplatform #DueDiligence #DeriskingBiotech #Derisq #CapitalEfficiency #RiskIntelligence #BiotechInvesting
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346395
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Pan-Cancer AI Platform Providing Academic-Level Precision Medicine to Community Settings with Kristin Ashcraft OncoRx Insights TRANSCRIPT
03/11/2026
Pan-Cancer AI Platform Providing Academic-Level Precision Medicine to Community Settings with Kristin Ashcraft OncoRx Insights TRANSCRIPT
Kristin Ashcraft, Co-Founder and CEO of OncoRx Insights, is determined to bring current information to community-based oncologists to help them identify precision therapies for their patients. The AI platform is designed to augment the oncologist's expertise by analyzing molecular diagnostics, pathology reports, and patient history to identify appropriate FDA-approved drugs and possible clinical trials. The aim is to democratize access to advanced treatment information, bringing the capabilities of academic medical centers to the community setting. Kristin explains, "Our goal is to increase the lifespan of cancer patients by enabling community oncologists to more efficiently identify precision therapies for their patients. We do this through a unique, comprehensive analysis of the molecular diagnostics, patient history, and pathology reports. The reason that we are here is that it can be summed up really well in a study that was recently published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, in which they found that only 36% of eligible lung cancer patients receive precision medicine therapies. And so OncoRX Insights is focused on bringing greater access to precision medicine for cancer patients." "Cancer results from genetic mutations from external or inherited causes, and it presents in over a hundred different forms. So as you pointed out, understanding the best possible treatment really is a challenge. But using the molecular diagnostic report and additional information like pathology reports, patient history, understanding those details can really help drive the most targeted treatment to have the best chance of the best outcomes for those patients." #OncoRxInsights #PrecisionMedicine #CancerCare #AIInHealthcare #Oncology #CommunityOncology #HealthTech #MedTech #CancerTreatment #DigitalHealth #PersonalizedMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #CancerResearch #HealthcareInnovation #RealWorldData
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346270
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Pan-Cancer AI Platform Providing Academic-Level Precision Medicine to Community Settings with Kristin Ashcraft OncoRx Insights
03/11/2026
Pan-Cancer AI Platform Providing Academic-Level Precision Medicine to Community Settings with Kristin Ashcraft OncoRx Insights
Kristin Ashcraft, Co-Founder and CEO of OncoRx Insights, is determined to bring current information to community-based oncologists to help them identify precision therapies for their patients. The AI platform is designed to augment the oncologist's expertise by analyzing molecular diagnostics, pathology reports, and patient history to identify appropriate FDA-approved drugs and possible clinical trials. The aim is to democratize access to advanced treatment information, bringing the capabilities of academic medical centers to the community setting. Kristin explains, "Our goal is to increase the lifespan of cancer patients by enabling community oncologists to more efficiently identify precision therapies for their patients. We do this through a unique, comprehensive analysis of the molecular diagnostics, patient history, and pathology reports. The reason that we are here is that it can be summed up really well in a study that was recently published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, in which they found that only 36% of eligible lung cancer patients receive precision medicine therapies. And so OncoRX Insights is focused on bringing greater access to precision medicine for cancer patients." "Cancer results from genetic mutations from external or inherited causes, and it presents in over a hundred different forms. So as you pointed out, understanding the best possible treatment really is a challenge. But using the molecular diagnostic report and additional information like pathology reports, patient history, understanding those details can really help drive the most targeted treatment to have the best chance of the best outcomes for those patients." #OncoRxInsights #PrecisionMedicine #CancerCare #AIInHealthcare #Oncology #CommunityOncology #HealthTech #MedTech #CancerTreatment #DigitalHealth #PersonalizedMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #CancerResearch #HealthcareInnovation #RealWorldData
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346250
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Implantable Pump Transforms Treatment for Liver Disease with Ian Crosbie Sequana Medical TRANSCRIPT
03/10/2026
Implantable Pump Transforms Treatment for Liver Disease with Ian Crosbie Sequana Medical TRANSCRIPT
Ian Crosbie, CEO of Sequana Medical, identifies the incidence of liver cirrhosis and the complication of liver ascites, which causes significant fluid buildup in the belly that severely impacts a patient's quality of life. Standard treatment requires repeated hospital visits to drain the fluid. The alfapump developed by Sequana is a fully implanted device that continuously drains ascites into the bladder for natural excretion, eliminating the need for drainage procedures. Ian explains, "Liver ascites is a complication of liver cirrhosis, a serious condition where the liver becomes badly scarred. As a result, the fluid accumulates in the belly, often five to ten liters of fluid. And as you can imagine, this causes huge swelling of the belly and major clinical problems, and obviously dramatically impacts the quality of life of these patients. Problems can include instability and falling. You can imagine with all that weight out front. The swelling of the belly causes difficulty eating, breathing, sleeping, and functioning." "So we're in an era of AI and targeted cancer therapies, CAR-T, and things like that. But the standard of care for these patients is to let them build up five to ten liters of fluid in their bellies, then bring them into hospital, stick a big needle in them, drain them over the course of five to seven hours, send them away, and then the moment they leave hospital, they start to reaccumulate that fluid again, and the process starts all over. That is a procedure known as paracentesis. Not only is it, as you can imagine, a painful, burdensome, and traumatic procedure, but in the days leading up to the procedure, the days and weeks as the fluid starts to accumulate, all those impacts on quality of life and clinical complications occur. And so that is why we developed alfapump to stop the buildup of fluid in the belly and to stop all of those problems and to stop those regular visits to the hospital." #SequanaMedical #MedicalDevices #LiverDisease #HealthcareInnovation #PatientCare #MedTech #Alfapump #DigitalHealth #ChronicDisease #QualityOfLife #HealthTech #MedicalBreakthrough
/episode/index/show/empoweredpatient/id/40346135
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Implantable Pump Transforms Treatment for Liver Disease with Ian Crosbie Sequana Medical
03/10/2026
Implantable Pump Transforms Treatment for Liver Disease with Ian Crosbie Sequana Medical
Ian Crosbie, CEO of Sequana Medical, identifies the incidence of liver cirrhosis and the complication of liver ascites, which causes significant fluid buildup in the belly that severely impacts a patient's quality of life. Standard treatment requires repeated hospital visits to drain the fluid. The alfapump developed by Sequana is a fully implanted device that continuously drains ascites into the bladder for natural excretion, eliminating the need for drainage procedures. Ian explains, "Liver ascites is a complication of liver cirrhosis, a serious condition where the liver becomes badly scarred. As a result, the fluid accumulates in the belly, often five to ten liters of fluid. And as you can imagine, this causes huge swelling of the belly and major clinical problems, and obviously dramatically impacts the quality of life of these patients. Problems can include instability and falling. You can imagine with all that weight out front. The swelling of the belly causes difficulty eating, breathing, sleeping, and functioning." "So we're in an era of AI and targeted cancer therapies, CAR-T, and things like that. But the standard of care for these patients is to let them build up five to ten liters of fluid in their bellies, then bring them into hospital, stick a big needle in them, drain them over the course of five to seven hours, send them away, and then the moment they leave hospital, they start to reaccumulate that fluid again, and the process starts all over. That is a procedure known as paracentesis. Not only is it, as you can imagine, a painful, burdensome, and traumatic procedure, but in the days leading up to the procedure, the days and weeks as the fluid starts to accumulate, all those impacts on quality of life and clinical complications occur. And so that is why we developed alfapump to stop the buildup of fluid in the belly and to stop all of those problems and to stop those regular visits to the hospital." #SequanaMedical #MedicalDevices #LiverDisease #HealthcareInnovation #PatientCare #MedTech #Alfapump #DigitalHealth #ChronicDisease #QualityOfLife #HealthTech #MedicalBreakthrough
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