Submitted

Last Updated March 31, 2022

Equitable Health Systems

Oncopadi Access to Remote Cancer care (ARC)

Team Leader

Abimbola Afolabi

Solution Overview & Team Lead Details

Our Organization

Oncopadi Technologies Limited

What is the name of your solution?

Oncopadi Access to Remote Cancer care (ARC)

Provide a one-line summary of your solution.

Empowering confident cancer decisions through virtual cancer clinics in public hospitals in remote locations.

Film your elevator pitch.

What specific problem are you solving?

In Nigeria, there are about 125,000 new cancer cases per year with 81 practising clinical oncologists (CO). The ratio of 1 CO to patients is 1,543 compared to the USA and Canada are 1:137 and 1:352 respectively. Furthermore, most of the COs are based in cities increasing the cost of transportation and time to access them. The problem we are addressing is the absence of clinical oncologists in public hospitals with a high volume of cancer patients. General surgeons and clinicians are tasked with the responsibility of making oncology decisions all alone in addition to their primary clinical tasks.This increases their workload, and reduces the quality of clinical decisions with suboptimal outcomes.

Ogun, a state with a population size of more than 5,000,000 people has one Clinical Oncologist (CO). Various hospital records estimate about 3,000 cancer patients present for oncology services per year through the surgical, medical, gynaecology and paediatric departments. The largest public hospital owned by the state government is the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) with no visiting or resident CO. Therefore, almost all cancer patients presenting to the OOUTH do not have access to expert opinion of a clinical oncologist and benefit of multidisciplinary tumour board.

This shortage of COs in the country is a significant contributor to the 63% breast cancer mortality rate. Besides the low survival rate, cancer patients experience stress, poor quality of life, debilitating side effects and financial constraint. Cancer patients receive a contributing factor in the weak oncology health care system, in particular the paucity of the oncology workforce. There is a global shortage of oncology workforce, and this has resulted in significant cancer health disparities. LMICs (Low and Middle Income Countries) are the worst hit with some countries like Chad, Central Africa Republic not having Clinical oncologists. In OOUTH, we see about 7,200 patients across the gynae, surgery and medical clinical units with no clinical oncologist on site. The OOUTH is a state owned hospital but due to the shortage of COs its cancer patients are managed by alternative medical personnel.

The two problems we are solving are:

Inability of cancer patients to receive an oncologist’s expert opinion during their treatment journey in the hospital
The paucity of multidisciplinary tumour boards(MTB) which is the gold standard of care.

Cancer patients on treatment do not get the best fighting chance when their clinical decisions are made by one cancer specialist. Also, the absence of evidence based medicine in the clinical decision making process because of the gold standard of cancer care is to discuss each patient’s case at a MTB, create a consensus clinical pathway and recommendation on individual cancer patients. Unfortunately, most Nigerian cancer patients do not benefit from this level of care because of the high patient load, and the shortage of COs in the country.

What is your solution?

Our solution, the Oncopadi ARC is a multipronged digital cancer health care systems program that leverages the high volume of cancer patients in public hospitals, partners with the state ministry of health to utilise limited cancer resources and redistributes clinical oncologists from cities to rural hospitals using technology.

The Oncopadi ARC has two unique value propositions

Technology: Centres where Clinical Oncologists are available like NSIA LUTH resort to technologies like Zoom platform which are not specifically designed for Clinical meetings. The OncopadiARC Virtual Tumour Board is the first attempt to build a technology that is suitable for our local setting. The technology features a virtual meeting room, digital radiology and pathology viewer, electronic health records, clinical pathway algorithm and an AI powered referral system. This technology will optimize the delivery of cancer services and ensure that patients have access to a multidisciplinary consensus treatment plan regardless of their geographical location. Unlike other common technologies used for clinical meetings like zoom, the OncopadiARC Virtual Tumour Board captures and stores clinical data (which is NDPR- Nigerian Data Protection Regulation compliant) for research and reiterates data generated to improve upon the decision making process for clinicians.

Aggregation of cancer specialists: Our pioneering approach features a growing network of over 150 cancer specialists who have committed their time to review cancer patients online. This would be the first time where scarce resources (cancer specialists) are redistributed to public hospitals. A case study is the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), which receives about 150 cancer patients weekly. Since the inception of the cancer unit, treatment has been provided by a team of trained gynae-oncologists, general surgeons, etc. However, the lack of clinical oncologists results in significant health disparities. Traditionally, these hospitals without clinical oncologists run their cancer care services without clinical oncologists and there is no substitute to that. For the first time, the OncopadiARC will provide two clinical oncologists on a weekly basis to collaborate with these cancer specialists during the virtual tumour board. Patients can now consult with clinical oncologists through the digital hubs.

OncopadiARC VTB is made up of an award-winning team with a cumulative 10 years track record in mobile health research and health care innovation. We have a diverse digital health team that include technologists, product engineers, clinicians, entrepreneurs, scientists, researchers across several institutions, and patients.

Our solution is globally recognised by a reputable cancer association - The US Astella Oncology.

The OncopadiARC VTB is unique with its model of partnership which cuts across high Tech organisations like Microsoft, MTN, AI & Robotics, Arthur Mbanefo Digital Research Centre and RBRR Digital Health Hub, University of Lagos, Oncopadi Technologies LTD. Our company is recognised both locally and internationally.

We are the first startup in Nigeria to develop a web application that will help cancer patients report their side effects during their course of radiotherapy. Our overarching goal is patient safety and to create solutions that positively impact the quality of life of cancer patients.

To address the shortfall of cancer specialists and ensure that patients irrespective of their geographical location(s) have prompt access to Cancer Specialists, Oncopadi Tech built a mobile health platform to redistribute and maximise scarce oncology resources across Nigeria called Oncopadi ARC-Accelerating Access to Remote Cancer Care (ARC) in Underserved Communities (OncopadiARC). Our venture, OncopadiARC is a digital public health intervention program designed to improve the cancer population's health and lower health care barriers in oncology.

Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?

Our solution serves cancer patients who are the B2C and hospitals who are the B2B (B2B2C)

About 60% of cancer patients are in the public hospitals. These Public hospitals have the high volume of cancer

Our B2C insights reveal that 60% of our mobile app users are caregivers.

(more user types)

Cancer patients are faced with scarcity of information and resources. Thousands of cancer patients visit different public hospitals in Nigeria lacking clinical oncologists. This makes them anxious and concerned about the quality of clinical decisions being made about their care. From our B2C insights, the cancer patient user persona and their needs include;

Newly diagnosed Cancer patients who need to commence treatment promptly.
Cancer Patients already on treatment who require a 2nd opinion Clinical oncologist review.
Caregivers
Patients on Palliative care who require a multidisciplinary team treatment approach.

Our target market or customers are cancer patients who are trapped in our communities with limited access to a clinical oncologist or cancer multidisciplinary team. In 2020, 125,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed in Nigeria. There is scientific evidence showing that about 80% of cancer patients present late and about 69% of these cancer patients will never get to a clinical oncologist review of their case. Our company has huge potential in the market as we are the first venture in Nigeria to develop a web application that will help cancer patients receive 2nd opinion clinical oncologist and multidisciplinary team review irrespective of geographical location.

How are you and your team well-positioned to deliver this solution?

Our clever use of technology to redistribute Clinical Oncologists to underserved public cancer hospitals and our approach to solving the cancer menace in Nigeria is innovative and augments the clinical efficiency of cancer hospitals.

Also, the Oncopadi team has spent well over five years developing award-winning technology-powered solutions, and in the process, we have gathered data, users, revenue and experience; these assets position us as a market leader to solve the shortage of cancer specialists in public cancer hospitals.

Furthermore, Oncopadi has a culture of feedback and active participation from our end users - patients, cancer specialists and hospitals. This approach enables us to be at the heart of the problem, also at the edge of creating and iterating game-changing technology for the cancer ecosystem

Finally, our co-founders have founders-fit, this gives us an unfair advantage to ideate, implement and scale our solutions sustainably. Oncopadi's combined years of experience is 100+ years, and it spans through oncology, technology, entrepreneurship, finance, research, governance, pharma etc.

Which dimension of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?

Build fundamental, resilient, and people-centered health infrastructure that makes essential services, equipment, and medicines more accessible and affordable for communities that are currently underserved;

Where our solution team is headquartered or located:

Lagos, Nigeria

Our solution's stage of development:

Pilot

How many people does your solution currently serve?

90% of the cancer population

Why are you applying to Solve?

market and financial barriers

In which of the following areas do you most need partners or support?

Financial (e.g. improving accounting practices, pitching to investors)

Who is the Team Lead for your solution?

Dr Omolola Salako

More About Your Solution

What makes your solution innovative?

The Oncopadi ARC has two unique value propositions

Aggregation of cancer specialists: Our pioneering approach features a growing network of over 150 cancer specialists who have committed their time to review cancer patients online in a bid to. This would be the first time where scarce resources (cancer specialists) are redistributed to public hospitals. A case study is the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), which receives about 150 cancer patients weekly. Since the inception of the cancer unit, treatment has been provided by a team of trained gynae-oncologists, general surgeons, etc. However, the lack of clinical oncologists results in significant health disparities. Traditionally these hospitals without clinical oncologists run their cancer care services without clinical oncologists and there is no substitute to that. For the first time, the OncopadiARC will provide two clinical oncologists on a weekly basis to collaborate with these cancer specialists during the virtual tumour board. Patients can now consult with clinical oncologists through the digital hubs.

Our solution is globally recognised by a reputable cancer association - The US Astella Oncology

The OncopadiARC VTB is unique with its model of partnership which cuts across high Tech organizations like Microsoft, MTN, AI & Robotics, Arthur Mbanefo Digital Research Centre and RBRR Tech Hub, University of Lagos, Oncopadi Technologies LTD. Our company is recognised both locally and internationally.

What are your impact goals for the next year and the next five years, and how will you achieve them?

5,000 Sign-Ups
2,500 Teleconsultations
3,000 tests from health shop
Technology upgrade
Regulatory-NDPR,HEFAMAA
Launch Oncopadi Hubs in 5 Public Hospitals

- Ogun, Lagos and Kebbi

Onboard 75 oncologists
Onboard 25 merchants
FMOH and Pharma partnership

How are you measuring your progress toward your impact goals?

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

What is your theory of change?

In addressing the shortage of clinical oncologists in countries with a critical need will help them meet the sustainable development goals for noncommunicable diseases by the year 2030. The shortage of clinical oncologists in Nigeria has led to several public hospitals with high volumes of cancer patients not to run Multidisciplinary Tumour Board Meetings (MDTS). Many patients and public-owned hospitals in about 18 states in Nigeria have no clinical oncologists. This is a problem the Federal Ministry of Health is trying to address through its National Cancer Control Plan. In a bid to address this shortage, Oncopadi Technologies LTD has partnered with the FMOH to pilot the hubs and Virtual Tumour Board (VTB) in three public hospitals with a volume of 5,000 new patients that lack clinical oncologists.

From the data analytics of our patient satisfaction survey, 60% of our consultation requests were tied to 2nd opinion for cancer care and management. In partnership with ARCON, 50% of the Oncologists in Nigeria are on board on our Oncopadi App, and are rendering consultation services digitally, because they are aligned with the vision and see the need to bridge this gap and they are committed to collaborating with other specialists to increase national coverage of cancer management.

Describe the core technology that powers your solution.

The technology features a virtual meeting room, digital radiology and pathology viewer, electronic health records, clinical pathway algorithm and an AI powered referral system. This technology will optimize the delivery of cancer services and ensure that patients have access to a multidisciplinary consensus treatment plan regardless of their geographical location. Unlike other common technologies used for clinical meetings like zoom, the OncopadiARC Virtual Tumour Board captures and stores clinical data (which is NDPR- Nigerian Data Protection Regulation compliant) for research and reiterates data generated to improve upon the decision making process for clinicians.

Which of the following categories best describes your solution?

A new business model or process that relies on technology to be successful

Please select the technologies currently used in your solution:

Software and Mobile Applications

If your solution has a website or an app, provide the links here:

https://www.oncopadiarc.com/

Which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals does your solution address?

3. Good Health and Well-being

In which countries do you currently operate?

Nigeria

In which countries will you be operating within the next year?

Germany
Ghana

Your Team

Your Business Model & Funding

Solution Team:

Abimbola Afolabi