Varian will invest in privately held digital health company Oncora Medical to accelerate the development of precision medicine in radiation oncology.

The partnership will allow the parties to fast-track the advancement of software tools.

Varian oncology software solutions senior vice-president Corey Zankowski said: “We envision a world where all patients have access to the highest quality cancer care regardless of their location.

“Oncora Medical’s ability to aggregate vast amounts of patient data is designed to empower oncologists with a decision support tool to achieve the goal of elevating the standard of care across the country.”

The company’s Patient Care system stores the data of cancer patients, treatments and outcomes to help doctors improve patient care. Oncora partnered with MD Anderson Cancer Center oncologists to develop the platform.

The predictive modelling engine estimates the new patient’s treatment outcomes by encoding results from past trials.

About Varian
At Varian, we envision a world without fear of cancer. For more than 70 years, we have developed, built and delivered innovative cancer care technologies and solutions for our clinical partners around the globe to help them treat millions of patients each year. With an Intelligent Cancer Care approach, we are harnessing advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics to enhance cancer treatment and expand access to care. Our 9,200 employees across 70 countries keep the patient and our clinical partners at the center of our thinking as we power new victories in cancer care. Because, for cancer patients everywhere, their fight is our fight. 

About Oncora Medical, Inc.
Oncora Medical, Inc., a privately held software company in Philadelphia, PA, has developed a powerful predictive analytics platform for oncology, capable of analyzing diverse healthcare data and applying advanced machine learning techniques to produce valuable clinical insights. Currently, Oncora is working to improve the cancer experience (both for physicians and their patients) with software to help design more personalized treatment plans and generate real world data to support scientific advancement.

The company’s research engine, Oncora Analytics, collects data from prior patient treatments. This data influences scientific and medical research. Currently, 13 cancer care sites are using this software in the US.

Oncora co-founder and CEO David Lindsay said: “Oncora’s mission is to improve outcomes for cancer patients by developing intuitive software tools to better collect and learn from real-world data.

“We look forward to partnering with Varian to develop and deploy innovative new tools in the fight against cancer.”

Varian purchased Cancer Treatment Services International (CTSI) for $283m in May.