This week’s newsletter features top insights spotlight groundbreaking advancements in healthcare, from Eko Health’s revolutionary partnership with LSU Athletics to the FDA's approval of new treatments for rare brain cancer and CTCL. Explore how AI and digital tools are transforming diagnostics and patient care through strategic collaborations and innovative technologies.

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Top Insights of the Week

Inspiration Pill

Eko Health teams up with LSU Athletics and Our Lady of the Lake Health to revolutionize heart health care for student-athletes

Eko Health’s technology will empower healthcare providers at Our Lady of the Lake Health, LSU Athletics’ Championship Health Partner, to conduct more comprehensive and accurate heart examinations during routine physicals. The AI-powered digital stethoscopes will enable early identification of potential cardiac issues, such as atrial fibrillation and heart murmurs, among LSU student-athletes.

Startups, Therapies and Devices

FDA Approves Drug for Two Types of Rare Brain Cancer

The FDA approved Servier Pharmaceuticals’ Voranigo as a treatment for two rare types of brain cancer.

Voranigo is available now. A spokesperson said Servier is working with Thermo Fisher Scientific on a companion diagnostic to identify patients eligible for the treatment.

FDA Approves Immunotherapy for Relapsed or Refractory CTCL

On August 8, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved denileukin diftitox-cxdl (Lymphir), a novel immunotherapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) who have received at least one prior systemic therapy. Denileukin diftitox is the only CTCL therapy that targets the interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptor found on malignant and regulatory T cells.

Big Health clinches FDA clearance of its digital therapeutic for insomnia, SleepioRx

SleepioRx is intended for the treatment of chronic insomnia and insomnia disorder as an adjunct to usual care in adults over 18. Sleepio can now be used nationwide as a prescription device by providers.

AI, Digital Tools and Partnerships

Cleveland Clinic announces new quantum computing and AI fellowship

Cleveland Clinic and the Novo Nordisk Foundation have announced a new academic partnership focusing on leading-edge IT research and its clinical applications. The three-year opportunity is aimed at early-stage researchers working at the intersection of quantum technologies, artificial intelligence, and precision medicine.

Mayo Clinic teams on AI with 3D imaging outfit

Mayo Clinic joins forces with 3D imaging startup JelloX Biotech on artificial intelligence-powered imaging analysis technology.

The new technology captures "enhanced spatial context," providing a 3D view of tissue architecture that hopes to improve diagnostic accuracy and consistency – and provide pathologists with a more comprehensive diagnosis for cancer patients.

Eleanor Health, Thriveworks Launch Partnership To Support Patients With substance-use disorder

Through the partnership, Eleanor Health’s patients can access Thriveworks’ therapists for additional mental health support beyond their substance-use disorder, including couples and family counseling. Likewise, Thriveworks’ patients can receive substance-use disorder treatment from Eleanor Health.

Bayer partners with Alara Imaging to standardize CT radiation doses

The two companies will integrate Alara's dose tools with Bayer's Calantic digital solution platform. Calantic is a vendor-neutral cloud-based marketplace of AI-enabled radiology apps aimed at automating routine radiology tasks.

Report

Rock Health survey shows how wearable device ownership and usage has evolved in the U.S. between 2020 and 2022

The Rock Health Digital Health Consumer Adoption Survey highlights the importance of including fully representative groups in wearable design processes and feedback sessions, underscores the power of partnering with large healthcare organizations to use their scale to expand awareness of and access to wearables, and emphasizes that broader marketing and outreach efforts are needed to help all consumers understand the value that wearables could provide in their daily lives, such as improved at-home safety and visibility into changing health patterns.

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