Syapse and FDA Leverage Real-World Data to Study Impact of COVID-19 on Cancer Patients

According to the National Cancer Institute, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in delays for cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment, leading to an increase in cancer mortality across the board and a widening of existing health disparities. Syapse, a company that aims to advance precision medicine in the field of oncology, recently entered into a 4-year Research Collaboration Agreement with the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE) to determine how best to utilize RWD/RWE in the fight against cancer.

Recent research performed by Syapse found that black cancer patients were more likely to have COVID-19 compared to other races. In his recent blog, Dr. Thomas Brown affirmed Syapse’s commitment towards leveraging RWD/RWE to identify and eliminate disparities in the diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 and cancer. ”Our work demonstrates the value of RWD and RWE to address valid research questions that almost by definition fall out of the construct of prospective cancer clinical trials, which already show a low number of participants from underserved populations,” said Dr. Brown. “We are committed to using RWD and RWE in our work with health systems, life sciences companies and regulators to support clinical and regulatory decision-making, improve clinical trial enrollment, and investigate promising ways to support clinicians and their cancer patients during this trying time.” Read the full blog here.