A new collaboration between pioneering MedTech platform Imagine If Health and WEHI will enable the streamlined integration of real-world evidence collection with oncology Medicines Access Programs (MAPs).  

MAPs facilitate deferred cost, cost-free or subsidised access for patients to access innovative medicines that are not listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). 

But this potentially rich source of data typically goes unused, despite being the most abundant source of real-world evidence outside of the PBS.  

The collaboration between Imagine If Health and the Gibbs lab at WEHI has the potential to enable pharmaceutical and biotech companies to collect real-world evidence as part of their access program management solution and understand drug effectiveness outside of the tightly controlled conditions of randomised controlled trials.  

Real-time, real-world  

Founder and CEO of Imagine If Health, Jason Macey, said data generated from carefully selected, treated and monitored patients enrolled in access programs can be used to inform treatment decisions, routine care and to advocate for funding approvals. 

“WEHI’s Gibbs lab are leaders in academic-led, real-world evidence collection, with over a decade of experience in the field,” he said.  

“This collaboration presents a significant opportunity for companies with medicines in oncology and haematology to include prospective real-world evidence collection in a robust and structured manner.  

“When collected in real-time, this evidence can offer huge value and help support better decision-making.”  

Professor Peter Gibbs, Laboratory Head and Joint Head of the Personalised Oncology division at WEHI, said the collaboration offered a smart solution for accelerating robust research on emerging cancer treatments. 

“By integrating into the Imagine If Health platform and ensuring all the relevant ethical research governance, it is possible to collect rich data in real-time and offer this to help improve access to oncology medicines,” he said.  

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