A new health technology startup called Driver wants to connect cancer patients and survivors to treatments, clinical trials and cancer centers across the country, with the hopes of being global.
Yes, but: This warrants skepticism. It's an expensive service, so initially it will cater to more affluent people. There are also questions about how the technology will operate within the U.S. insurance system and whether it would lead to overtreatment.
How it works: A patient downloads the Driver app and gives consent for the company to collect medical records and tumor tissue. The technology then finds cancer treatments or clinical trials that are available and hospitals they can go to, which can lead to a video conference with an oncologist about next steps and future appointments.
A "patient support team" will evaluate people's health insurance, and that may limit their options, Driver co-founder Petros Giannikopoulos said.
The bottom line: These costs are unaffordable for most middle- and lower-income people, especially those on Medicare and Medicaid. And they don't include travel costs if a patient wants to go to a recommended hospital for treatment — costs that Driver currently would not cover.
The big picture: Giannikopoulos, whose company is partnering with the National Cancer Institute, said the "first and most important barrier is knowledge" when it comes to cancer care. But as more patients grapple with higher out-of-pocket costs, financial barriers are becoming a much bigger concern, and Driver doesn't really solve that.
