Ancora.ai: Without clinical trials, there would be no aspirin

Conducting clinical trials is important to investigate the safety and effectiveness of new methods of treating, preventing, diagnosing, and understanding human diseases. When only a very small number of people take part in clinical trials, the results cannot always be generalized to other populations. This is where Ancora.ai comes into play.

thebroker talks to the founder and CEO of the startup Ancora.ai. In February of this year, it was included in the Future of Health Grant support program launched by CSS in cooperation with the EPFL Innovation Park.

Danielle Ralic, the founding of Ancora.ai was preceded by an experience you had on a hike in 2017. Tell us about it.

I was working with pharma companies and knew quite a bit about clinical trials but when I asked my friends and family, no one else really knew or was told about them. I was hiking with my husband when a man asked me to take a picture of him. As we were talking he asked me what I do and I mentioned a type of immunotherapy and his face lit up. I asked if he was a doctor or a researcher and he said no, he’s a stage 4 cancer patient. I asked him how he knew about immunotherapy and he said that he’s currently in remission thanks to an immunotherapy clinical trial that he found by chance through a friend of a friend’s cousin’s aunt’s neighbor who worked at a research hospital.

That moment was really the catalyst to build Ancora.ai since I saw what an impact having access to a clinical trial could have, and how challenging it is for most people to even know about these trials, never mind having the opportunity to participate in one. I believe we can’t be leaving healthcare to chance, and we can use technology to help change this.

Ancora.ai has been accepted into the Future of Health Grant support program. What does that mean exactly?

The Future of Health Grant program is a wonderful opportunity for us. The program has helped us to meet and network with other companies in the healthcare ecosystem and get good feedback on our solution. Additionally, the mentorship was incredibly helpful for us in terms of thinking through business strategy and fundraising. It has been a huge boost in learning more about the Swiss healthcare system and how we can be a part of it.

What types of clinical trials are on Ancora’s platform?

Ancora.ai currently includes clinical trials for 15 types of cancer. We only include trials that are looking for patients, or will soon be looking for patients to join. We show trials that can be evaluating new types of treatments, devices, diagnostics, health coaching, and other kinds of support for patients.

Participating in clinical trials can save lives. Can it also save money?

Since a clinical trial is evaluating a new treatment, diagnostic, or other type of intervention, the cost of what is being researched in the trial is covered by the trial’s sponsor. This means that if the trial is researching a new treatment, that new treatment is available at no cost for the patient. Please note that considering a clinical trial is best done in consultation with your medical team. 

Your platform currently lists studies on 15 types of cancer worldwide. Which ones are these?

That is correct. We currently support a variety of solid tumors including bile duct, breast, cervical, colorectal, esophageal, kidney, liver, lung, melanoma, neuroendocrine, pancreatic, prostate and stomach cancer. We also support two types of blood cancer: acute myeloid leukemia and multiple myeloma.

Will this list be expanded?

Yes, we aim to add a new type of cancer when we have patient partnerships and a medical expert panel. We aim to add a new cancer type once a quarter. This year we will be adding acute lymphoblastic leukemia and ovarian cancer.

Can Ancora.ai be described as a „search tool“ that helps patients find clinical trials tailored to them more easily?

Yes, we like to consider ourselves as a «google search» for clinical trials. Our goal is to help patients and their medical teams more search more easily for clinical trials and find them faster. We believe that if we can make it easier to find relevant clinical trials, more patients will have the opportunity to participate.

So that every patient has the best chance of recovery, you use technology and the patient-focused approach to give everyone and anyone access to clinical trials. How does democratizing this approach work?

Currently, being considered for a clinical trial is based on the chance that you have access to a medical professional who is aware of a trial for you. Since today it is based on what doctor you have access to, and what trials they are aware of, it is not a very systematic process. The problem is that finding clinical trial information is a difficult and time-consuming process since you have to read through lengthy paragraphs that use highly medical language on trial registries.

We believe that if we can unlock clinical trial information to make it easy for patients and healthcare providers alike to find relevant trials, we can then enable more people to consider trials and democratize access to trials.

How and where do you find studies of interest to Ancora.ai?

Ancora takes in data daily from the main clinical trial database- clinicaltrials.gov. Additionally, Ancora works with local partners to add local trials and updates trial information. For example, we work with the Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research (SAKK) to get monthly updates on which trials are actively looking for patients at each hospital.

Do pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, etc. contact you directly?

Pharmaceutical companies and hospitals contact Ancora.ai to give us more information about their trials so we can enhance the information on the Ancora.ai website. Otherwise, we at Ancora contact hospitals and pharmaceutical companies when a patient is interested in a trial to help refer the patient over to the trial. 

Ancora provides comprehensive information on clinical trials. Does the patient or his treating physician contact Ancora.ai in order to participate in a study?

The patient and/ or their physician can contact the Ancora team to ask for help to be referred over to the trial of interest. When we get a request to contact at trial, we check the information and then contact the trial and the hospital it is running at to help connect the patient to the trial team. The trial team then does the final review of the patient’s profile to see if the patient is a fit for the trial. We also strongly encourage that if a patient or their caregiver finds a trial, they should give relevant information to their medical team to ask them for their advice.

How do you know if there is a study for a particular disease?

To see if there is a study, you should answer the questions on Ancora.ai. The questions use the information to remove trials that are not relevant and then show the trials that match the disease and some other aspects of the diagnosis like the cancer stage. You can also use the filters to look for certain types of trials, or look for trials across bigger distances.

Some cancers are rarer and have less options in which case, we suggest saving the search you made on Ancora so you can get weekly updates of new trials that match your profile.

How much does it cost to register for a study through the Ancora.ai platform?

It is free for patients and their care teams.

Who compensates Ancora?

Currently, we have sponsorships from patient organizations and pharmaceutical companies to cover our operational costs.

How many studies are on your platform?

We have around 15,000 studies.

Ancora’s mission is to develop clinical trials of diverse populations (e.g., all ages, genders, ethnic groups) to develop better, safer, and more effective treatments. Are you already succeeding in doing this?

Yes, we are incredibly proud to say that we are reaching our goal. We have done detailed analysis to see who we can reach with our trial finding tool and we found that we reach a greater diversity of patients and reach people in rural areas. We will be issuing our impact report in the coming months to show our progress to date. There is still much work to be done, but the results are highly encouraging.

What is the difference between using placebo and an active trial?

A placebo is a treatment that has no therapeutic effect on the condition being treated and is used as a control to compare the effects of a new treatment. Please note, for cancer trials there are none that include a placebo treatment for a patient as that is unethical. When evaluating the effectiveness of treatments in cancer trials, often the standard of care is used as the comparator. This is known as an active-controlled trial. The established, active treatment (standard of care) is used to compare the effects of the new treatment

Do exceptions apply for certain, serious diseases in order to be able to participate in a study without placebo?

Yes, exceptions are applied for certain serious diseases. The trial must consider if it is ethical and practical to use a placebo. The well-being of the patient is of utmost importance. Note that clinical trials are designed with strict ethical and safety guidelines to ensure the well-being of trial participants.

Danielle Ralic is the CEO and Founder of Ancora.ai and is a true health tech enthusiast. She studied Information Systems with a specialty in Healthcare Information Technology at Boston College. She then worked as a technology consultant for Deloitte in Boston, MA for several years working with hospitals and the public health department to deploy tech solutions. She then joined ZS Associates in Los Angeles, CA and then Zurich to deliver business intelligence solutions to Top 10 pharmaceutical clients. She is also an accomplished panelist and speaker sharing insights on advanced analytics in healthcare and building health tech solutions.

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