Cerner this week announced that it is collaborating with Elligo Health Research and Freenome for a clinical trial project that seeks to advance early cancer detection via insights derived from Cerner's Learning Health Network.

WHY IT MATTERS
The three companies will be harness real-world data from the network's participating health system and use Freenome's "multiomics" technology for the Sanderson Study, an forthcoming clinical trial designed to detect multiple types of cancer.

Freenome’s platform uses machine learning models to analyze tumor and non-tumor signals, with the goal of detecting cancer in its earliest, most treatable stages with a single blood draw. The aim is to innovate a more patient-centric approach to multi-cancer detection, reducing diagnostic complexity and optimizing processes for clinical efficiency.

Elligo Health Research, will work with Learning Health Network members to speed site activation and enroll a large volume of patients much faster than traditional recruitment models, officials say, enabling diverse nationwide patient participation, spanning many demographics and communities.

"Faster clinical studies mean faster speed to market, which means more patients getting the medicine and technologies they need, sooner," said Elligo CEO John Potthoff in a statement. "Elligo’s platform, together with Cerner’s Learning Health Network, has the ability to significantly accelerate startup and engagement with thousands of patients for any study."

THE LARGER TREND
Cerner first launched the Learning Health Network in collaboration with Duke Clinical Research Institute in 2019, with the mission of helping life sciences, pharma and healthcare researchers gain easier access to aggregated clinical data. The project started that year with a pilot focused on cardiovascular disease.

Cerner notes that this new initiative will be one of the first cancer-screening trials available to the fast-growing LHN, which now comprises some 85 health systems across the U.S. working together to broaden access to clinical trials by contributing de-identified data.

The project is being driven by Cerner's new Enviza business unit, which was formed this past October to expand the availability of deidentified datasets and other real-world evidence for research on diagnostics and therapeutics.

ON THE RECORD
"The clinical research Cerner will enable has the potential to advance early cancer detection so patients can seek timely treatment and improve their chances of survival," said Christy Dueck, vice president of Cerner Enviza, in a statement. "Data and technology have the power to help clinicians and researchers expand therapeutic knowledge and accelerate their development and delivery, which can improve people’s lives around the world."

"Our long-term goal is to advance multi-cancer products into clinical practice to save more lives," added Riley Ennis, Freenome's chief product officer. "This collaboration with Cerner and Elligo will enable us to generate real-world evidence and make our clinical studies available to more people, to save more lives."

Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN
Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com
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