December 4, 2020 – McKesson and Amgen have signed a strategic agreement to help improve cancer care in community oncology settings.
The multi-year agreement will focus on reducing gaps in care by optimizing access to innovative precision medicine and immuno-oncology in the community setting.
The partnership will be led by Ontada, McKesson’s new oncology technology and insights business. Ontada is focused on helping life sciences companies like Amgen improve patient outcomes for cancer care, from early clinical development to drug commercialization and post-launch activation of insights, as well as empowering oncology providers at the point of need to deliver more-informed, more-effective, more-efficient care to their patients.
Through real-world data gathered with Ontada’s proprietary technology for community oncology practices, such as those that are part of The US Oncology Network, Ontada has the real-world knowledge to help push cancer care forward, McKesson says.
Amgen and Ontada will launch various programs over the course of the partnership and build on projects that have already begun, such as those focusing on reducing gaps in molecular testing and understanding treatment patterns in the community setting. For example, Amgen and McKesson recently conducted real-world research to better understand patterns of molecular testing in advanced/metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with community oncologists with plans to publish the findings in early 2021. Through the strategic partnership, McKesson and Amgen hope to:
- Elevate awareness on molecular testing in order to optimize care in patients that benefit from targeted therapy
- Uncover insights on unmet need and treatment outcomes by enriching data and insight capabilities
- Leverage real-world evidence to better understand and optimize the deployment of biosimilars to offer providers and their patients greater choice of therapies relative to value
- Co-develop new approaches to deliver immuno-oncology therapies in the community setting
- Optimize therapy sequencing to improve patient outcomes including supportive care