Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Technology
May 05, 2015 01:00 AM

IBM's Watson targets cancer and enlists prominent providers in the fight

Adam Rubenfire
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    examining DNA, doctor
    Dr. Norman Sharpless, director of the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, examines DNA sequencing data.

    IBM's new health analytics division will marshal its supercomputers against one of medicine's biggest terrors: cancer. The company announced Tuesday that 14 cancer centers and health systems have signed on to use the technology.

    Watson, IBM's supercomputer platform, will use its advanced cognitive capabilities to sift through patients' immense genetic data and combine those DNA insights with medical literature to determine the best treatment. A process that would normally take weeks for a physician to complete is expected to take only a few minutes for Watson.

    Cancer specialists at 14 hospitals across the country will be among the first to work with the technology. Watson's analytic capabilities are expected to help clinicians decide whether personalized treatments targeting specific cancer-causing genetic mutations could be more beneficial for a patient than standard chemotherapy, surgery or radiation.

    IBM also announced Tuesday that it will work with electronic health-record developer Epic Systems Corp. to integrate Watson's cognitive abilities into its EHR system. Watson will use patient-specific data to offer medical literature and case studies in real time in conjunction with Epic's advanced decision-support technology.

    The Armonk, N.Y.-based computer giant introduced its Watson Health division during the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society conference in April. With the company's acquisition of Explorys, a cloud-computing system spinoff from the Cleveland Clinic, IBM expects to create about 2,000 new and existing jobs in Boston and New York City dedicated to healthcare analytics. The company said it plans to invest $1 billion in the pursuit.

    Watson Genomic Analytics, the platform for the cancer project, is a cloud-based service for evidence gathering and analysis. It will look for variations in the full human genome and for possible drugs and treatments found in research, clinical studies, treatment guidelines, journal articles and patient information.

    “We think what we're doing is very unique, in part because we have capabilities in cognitive computing that are unique," said Sean Hogan, IBM general manager and vice president for healthcare. "It's processing large-volume data but also processing content and knowledge.”

    The cost of analyzing patient genomes has dropped dramatically in recent years, so more patients have asked their doctors for targeted therapies, Hogan said. IBM hopes the Watson platform will make this process more accessible to a wider group of patients.

    As Watson mines more and more patient data, the supercomputer's rationale and insights are expected to improve. This will also allow researchers to access a bigger store of data that could better reveal patterns and best practices.

    Handling all of that patient data comes at a risk. Sophisticated, record-breaking hacks this past year at insurers Premera Blue Cross and Anthem have shown that the healthcare industry falls short when it comes to protecting valuable patient data.

    Many of the organizations interested in harnessing Watson's capabilities have approached IBM because of its sophisticated data security capabilities, Hogan said. He noted that a lot of the information used by Watson can reside locally with clients, while IBM takes the necessary steps to protect information in the cloud.

    The initial organizations working on the cancer project are:

  • Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
  • BC Cancer Agency, Vancouver, British Columbia
  • City of Hope National Medical Center, Monrovia, Calif.
  • Cleveland Clinic
  • Duke Cancer Institute, Durham, N.C.
  • Buffett Cancer Center at the University of Nebraska, Omaha
  • McDonnell Genome Institute at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis
  • New York (N.Y.) Genome Center
  • Sanford Health, Sioux Falls, S.D.
  • University of Kansas Cancer Center, Kansas City
  • University of North Carolina Lineberger Cancer Center, Chapel Hill
  • University of Southern California Center for Applied Molecular Medicine, Los Angeles
  • University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle
  • Yale Cancer Center, New Haven Conn.
  • IBM said additional cancer centers are expected to join the program later this year.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Chat-GPT-healthcare-2.png
    Why Boston Children's wants to hire a ChatGPT expert
    Screen Shot 2018-12-19 at 1.36.49 PM.png
    GE HealthCare stock drops despite revenue growth
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Health IT Strategist (HITS) Newsletter: Sign up for the latest IT and medical technology news delivered 3 days a week (M, W, F).
     
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing