Accelerating Innovation in Cancer Care: Inside the CancerX Moffitt Innovation Summit

From the Stabile Research Building at Moffitt Cancer Center, summit attendees witnessed patients arriving below. "Look at that line of cars," Dr. Patrick Hwu, Moffitt's CEO, pointed out. "Every vehicle carries someone counting on us—This is why we're here!" This powerful reminder energized healthcare leaders, startups, and advocates throughout the March 18-19 event, as they collaborated to scale digital solutions revolutionizing cancer care.

The summit began with a networking reception where Xavier Avat, CancerX Steering Committee Chair and Moffitt's EVP/Chief Business Officer, introduced 16 Champion organizations committed to mentoring startups. "CancerX wants to bring focus to the innovation landscape," said Avat. "Our rigorous vetting process identified 14 of the most promising startups from a highly competitive field. The question now is how we expand and scale these thoroughly vetted solutions to help cancer centers at large and ultimately all the patients they serve."

Day two started with an Executive Breakfast where C-suite leaders discussed accelerating oncology innovation through digital solutions. They addressed challenges in clinical trials, regulatory pathways, cybersecurity, and integration into clinical practice. The executives explored data and AI's potential to personalize treatment while acknowledging data quality and standardization hurdles. Dr. Hwu emphasized that despite implementation challenges, "we owe it to our patients to try our hardest" given that digital solutions could save lives.

The main summit opened with Tim Adams, Moffitt's Institute Board Chair, followed by Dr. Vondalyn Wright from Moffitt's Patient and Family Advisory Council, who shared her experience as both patient and advocate through her Fight Wright Foundation. Dr. Grace Cordovano, CancerX Fellow and Patient Advocate, hosted startup showcases, ensuring patient needs remained central to technological advancement.

Three showcase sessions highlighted the 14 startups selected for the 2025 CancerX Accelerator cohort:

• First showcase: Encapsulate, Dyania Health, We Are Here, and Xploro (patient engagement solutions)
• Second showcase: Arcascope, Citrus Oncology, Fifth Eye, First Ascent Biomedical, and Manta Cares (clinical outcome tools)
• Third showcase: AIQ Solutions, Gabbi, mPATH Health, Nen, and Recursive Health (data-driven approaches)

A series of panels connected startups with Moffitt's experts. In "How Innovation Fuels Our Strategy at Moffitt," Dr. Roger Li emphasized, "There's no barrier we can't overcome if we continue focusing on our shared mission. Using digital AI to empower clinicians and patients to get on clinical trials is a priority, and democratizing the use of AI for rural doctors is a key concept in this space."

The "Navigating the Health System as a Startup" panel, moderated by Lindsay Deneault from Advocate Health, offered startups insight into healthcare's decision-making processes. Moffitt panelists detailed investments to streamline evaluation of new technologies and candidly addressed common barriers while proposing collaborative solutions.

The "Transforming Patient Care Through Big Data" panel showcased Moffitt's MCAP database representing 700,000 patients with over 2200 data points per patient. This has enabled Moffitt's quantitative science division, chaired by Dr. El Naqa, with Dr. Valdes focusing on machine learning and AI governance. Moffitt has also invested in mathematical oncology to tailor treatments for improved patient outcomes.

A highlight was the Alumni Fireside Chat where previous accelerator participants Ognjen Nikolic (Lind AI) and Dr. Naresh Ramarajan (Navya) shared insights. Both companies have secured enterprise contracts with Champion organizations, demonstrating the program's impact in creating commercial pathways for digital innovation.

The afternoon featured working sessions where startups and Champions explored partnership opportunities. "Talking with startups, it's interesting to see how they go to market," noted Rick Peng from Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK). "Those that have viable solutions may have lasting impact. The key question is how do we make pilots lead to sustainable implementation? The answer is having a demonstrable impact."

Dr. Kamal Jethwani, VP Lead CancerX and VP of Digital Ventures at Moffitt, concluded by emphasizing that "the community can come together to solve" cancer care's complex challenges.

The summit reinforced critical themes: patient voices in solution development, multidisciplinary collaboration, expanding digital health access to rural areas, and mentorship in healthcare innovation. The 14 startups now move forward with guidance from Champions, carrying hope for patients everywhere—forming a unified force determined to create a future where cancer no longer dictates anyone's life story.