Watson Gets Personal in the Fight Against Cancer

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Cancer continues to be one of the biggest healthcare challenges in the U.S. The American Cancer Society estimates that nearly 1.7 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer this year. While many advances have been made to improve cancer treatment and care, it can still be devastating news for anyone receiving the diagnosis.

It pains us to watch patients, our IBMers included, struggle with any disease or chronic condition — we want to do more to help. It’s our goal to help IBMers and their families live healthier, more active lives – and that includes better managing illnesses.

Cancer is personal. Everyone’s journey is unique, so treatment plans should be too. We’re proud of how IBM is tackling the challenge of cancer treatment with Watson – it’s making personalized medicine a reality. And we’re thrilled that now, for those IBMers who need them, IBM is making available three new Watson Health oncology services: Watson for Oncology, Watson for Clinical Trial Matching and Watson for Genomics.

Collaborating with Best Doctors, qualifying IBM employees and their family members fighting cancer, along with their treating physician, can tap into Watson’s insights for a second opinion on cancer treatment options, as well as potential clinical trials. Both Watson for Oncology and Watson for Clinical Trial Matching will be free services; there will be a laboratory fee for access to Watson for Genomics.

How do these services work? Watson for Oncology is cognitive technology that rapidly provides physicians with personalized, evidence-based treatment options. Currently, less than five percent of all patients in the U.S. are enrolled in clinical trials.[1] Watson for Clinical Trial Matching enables clinicians to quickly match patients with potential trials for cancer treatment using cognitive computing combined with natural language processing.

The goals are to help patients connect with appropriate trials and increase their chances of being selected for the trial. Watson for Genomics analyzes the genomic profile from a patient’s tumor and identifies potentially cancer causing mutations, helping oncologists confirm a patient’s cancer diagnosis and pinpoint possible therapies. Watson’s goal is to help reduce genomic analysis time and scale access to knowledge.

Personalized medicine in cancer care is the gold standard for treatment, and data are essential. That is why Watson can make a difference in treating cancer. Starting with our employees is an incredible opportunity to invest in their health and wellbeing. This segment on 60 Minutes shows the work IBM is doing to apply Watson to cancer and may give you a sense of why we believe giving our employees access is so important.

From a benefits perspective, we’re excited to respond to the passionate call from IBM’s own community of patients and survivors who believe in the promise of Watson and cognitive technology and the impact it will have.

IBM is no stranger to being a leader in healthcare solutions, both for our clients and for our employees. IBM was a founding member of the Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative, an advocacy group that advanced the concept of the patient-centered medical home as a way to revolutionize healthcare. IBM was also an early adopter of no cost preventative services, including screenings for certain diseases, cancer and otherwise, for our employees.

IBM has referred to healthcare as our “moonshot.” Through the power of Watson, we have swiftly begun a healthcare disruption using the power of cognitive insights. This announcement is the next milestone in what we believe will be many others that drive positive change for people fighting cancer, both in the U.S. and around the world.
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To learn more, visit ibm.com/watsonhealth.

[1] http://www.cancer.net/navigating-cancer-care/how-cancer-treated/clinical-trials/about-clinical-trials