Testbed Sweden Precision Health Cancer
In 2021, Vision Zero Cancer, Genomic Medicine Sweden and SciLifeLab joined forces with public sector authorities, regions, healthcare, academia, industry and patient associations to create an innovation hub that facilitates the introduction of more precise prevention and treatment in cancer care.
Testbed Sweden Precision Health Cancer is based on a diverse and holistic portfolio of actors and actions to meet identified barriers to development and equitable implementation of precision health in routine cancer care. The partners are all active in various areas of relevance for the development of precision health in cancer within the innovation milieu and provides key expertise, knowledge, and contacts to allow for expected progress and results.
The overarching long-term goal of the precision health innovation hub is to lessen the burden of cancer for patients and society. Increased precision of care means more effective resource allocation, ultimately improving sustainability and outcomes in cancer in Sweden and beyond.
The purpose of Testbed Sweden Precision Health Cancer is to prototype a comprehensive ecosystem for the equitable and sustainable implementation of precision medicine in Sweden.
As part of Vinnova’s program "Sustainable Precision Health" 2021- 2026, the Testbed engages stakeholders from the full pentahelix, with project partners from authorities and regions, academia, industry, civil society and Vision Zero Cancer as convenor and catalyst.
Building the Future of Medicine
Through strengthened national and international collaboration and the use of existing national research and clinical infrastructures, the Partnership will pave the way for the next generation of medicine by 2030, centered on the individuals’ personal characteristics, and leading to increased effectiveness. The patient perspective is central to the initiative.
Precision medicine
Precision medicine is rapidly emerging and has the potential to defeat cancer. But the possibilities for this depend on access to high-quality molecular diagnostics and access to precision medicine clinical trials to enable implementation. In equal and sustainable cancer care, each patient and resident is offered accurate and individually tailored prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up based on their unique conditions, such as genetic profile and specific biomarkers.
The challenges for this field are translating research results into clinical practice, facilitating their adoption by healthcare systems, and developing cost calculations and reimbursement models. Implementation of precision health healthcare systems requires a broad societal perspective, including economic sustainability, societal benefits, and equity of access. Citizen and patient literacy will have to be fully incorporated, so that shared decisions can be made.
Significant investments are still needed for infrastructure in clinical settings, particularly regarding biomarker technologies, health data accessibility and interpretation by healthcare professionals. Training and life-long education of health professionals must also be part of the strategy. To allow for successful implementation, key players along the whole value chain need to be involved.
These include citizens and patients, researchers, clinicians, healthcare providers, policy makers, regulators, health economists, experts on ethical, legal, and societal implications (ELSI), data/information and communication technology (ICT) experts and industry stakeholders. Within Testbed Sweden Precision Health Cancer we use implementation research as a driving force to achieve a faster introduction of a more equal and sustainable cancer care.
WHAT IS A TESTBED?
The testbed is an important part of the ecosystem for innovation - for effective development and market introduction of new products, processes and services. In the concept of testbed, everything from equipment and pilot machines to policy labs, virtual and exploratory environments with associated expertise for continuous development is collected. This is where expertise, industries, problem owners and users meet to jointly develop the innovations of the future!
Collaboration and co-creation for innovation
Sweden, with a strong acumen in investing in equitable healthcare, research, and innovation, is in a unique position to maximising this potential of new technologies with scientific and clinical progress. Sweden has the necessary prerequisites: world-class research and research infrastructure, a health care system of high international standard, competitive industry, and world-leading innovation. What we need now is to strengthen our national and international cooperation across disciplines and sectors. This is where Testbed Sweden Precision Health Cancer comes into play!