Between interest rates reaching their highest levels in 15 years and the explosion of artificial intelligence (AI), 2023 was a year filled with both challenges and opportunities for those of us in the health care technology industry. For better or worse, many of those same trends are following us into 2024. Obstacles such as the worsening clinician shortage and innovations such as the adoption of AI will remain top-of-mind for problem solvers and innovators in the health care technology space.
Yet the future is bright for the year ahead, with a variety of exciting technological advancements on the horizon. Specialty areas such as oncology, which have traditionally lagged when it comes to digital adoption, are prime for transformation in 2024. Examples of trends that can revolutionize cancer care include:
Digital health. The ever-growing complexity of cancer care, the financial toxicity that accompanies a cancer diagnosis, and the increased interest in hybrid care models are all factors driving the increased adoption of digital health solutions in oncology. Despite being a leader in therapeutic innovation, oncology lacks patient-friendly technology tools, which we are all accustomed to from other industries such as banking and retail. Virtual care options and remote patient monitoring tools can fill the void and serve as always-on monitoring companions between treatment visits so patients can get symptoms, questions, and concerns addressed quickly. Not only does this improve outcomes, but it reduces the anxiety that patients experience when they live with high levels of uncertainty. Digital platforms can also serve as an expert resource of information, expand access to cancer care and mental health care, and improve the quality of life for people living with cancer. Ultimately, the adoption of these important tools will lay the groundwork for a more material change in which even complex specialty care can be delivered in a primarily virtual manner.
Generative AI. We’re all familiar with the cautionary tales regarding AI in health care, including factual inaccuracies, safety concerns, and inherent biases being built into the technology. Despite these roadblocks, entrepreneurs and scientists are working hard to build guardrails and ensure there’s automated fact-checking built into generative AI solutions. Potential use cases include clinical decision support, medical record summarization, patient-facing educational materials, and an array of improved administrative and clinical workflows for providers. With these changes underway, the future of generative AI is promising and can revolutionize oncology and digital health.
Interoperability. This does not just refer to point solutions talking to each other and sharing data – but individual companies and organizations that are building interesting and important technologies. As we continue to make progress with information sharing, it is valuable for important information to be distributed industry-wide so others can mimic and build on it, with a shared goal of optimizing clinical outcomes and reducing cost. With the U.S. facing an estimated shortage of between 37,800 and 124,000 primary care and specialist physicians by 2034, leveraging technology to ensure information is shared across organizations will be essential to minimizing information gaps from the clinician shortage and maintaining progress in the health care IT space. This type of collaboration remains a core opportunity to be addressed and expanded upon in 2024 and the years ahead.
Real-world data. Real-world data has reached primetime, and there’s a fast-growing set of drugs coming to market where real-world data was used to help understand the context of the disease area and its treatment. A recent study by researchers at Yale used a real-world data set to look at rates of systemic cancer treatment in patients at the end of life. Many individuals who would otherwise not prefer to have aggressive treatment at the end of their lives decided to receive it. Examining real-world data helps to understand the predictors of treatment at the end of life to begin addressing this complex issue. Beyond drug development, AI is starting to have a meaningful impact in making this data available by extracting text-based data in an analyzable, high-quality way. In 2024, we’ll start to see some of the various owners of proprietary real-world data sources bringing their data together to make the insights for the overall oncology community deeper and more meaningful.
Technology can play a major role in fields like oncology, which have traditionally been slower to adopt innovations. In 2024, we’ll see heightened interest in cancer-supportive care programs that are technology-enabled to address clinician shortages and evolving patient needs and expectations. Digital health, generative AI, interoperability, and real-world data can transform care delivery and improve patient outcomes for not only cancer care, but the health care industry at large.
Andrew Norden is a physician executive.
