Empowered Patient Podcast Karen Jagoda

Mike Kelly, CEO of NervGen Pharma, discusses the company's vision to build a startup biotech focused on repairing the central nervous system, helping patients regain function, not just slowing progression. Their first product, NVG-291, is currently in clinical trials for spinal cord injury. The drug candidate aims to promote natural repair by targeting molecules called CSPGs that inhibit nerve growth and repair. NerveGen is also developing NVG-300 for other indications such as stroke, ALS, MS, and Alzheimer's. He draws parallels between his previous experience developing the Narcan Nasal Spray for opioid overdose and the unmet medical need in spinal cord injury.
Mike explains, "We are a company focusing on a group of products, more like a platform, that will enable the nervous system to repair itself. So the vision is to build a startup biotech focused in CNS and to get our first product over the line in spinal cord injury."
"There are no drugs available. So this is something that happens in an instant and someone's life has changed forever. The patient typically will then get hospitalized, have surgery to decompress the area that's injured, and then they're on the road to recovery. The only treatment is rehabilitation and exercise, and they push themselves to remake as many connections as possible. Still, that repair typically plateaus around six to nine months after their injury. And the level of function they regained during that period is where they'll be for the rest of their lives, unfortunately."
 "NVG-291 is a product that aims to promote natural repair. When you damage, say, you cut your finger or break your foot, your body repairs itself very easily. When you damage your central nervous system, your body protects itself very well and inhibits repair, actually. Our drug targets one of those mechanisms that inhibit repair, turns it off, and allows the body to repair itself naturally."
#NervGenPharma #SCI #SpinalCordInjury #SpinalNews #SpinalInjury #Paralysis #NerveRepair #CNS
NervGen.com
Listen to the podcast here

Mike Kelly, CEO of NervGen Pharma, discusses the company's vision to build a startup biotech focused on repairing the central nervous system, helping patients regain function, not just slowing progression. Their first product, NVG-291, is currently in clinical trials for spinal cord injury. The drug candidate aims to promote natural repair by targeting molecules called CSPGs that inhibit nerve growth and repair. NerveGen is also developing NVG-300 for other indications such as stroke, ALS, MS, and Alzheimer's. He draws parallels between his previous experience developing the Narcan Nasal Spray for opioid overdose and the unmet medical need in spinal cord injury.
Mike explains, "We are a company focusing on a group of products, more like a platform, that will enable the nervous system to repair itself. So the vision is to build a startup biotech focused in CNS and to get our first product over the line in spinal cord injury."
"There are no drugs available. So this is something that happens in an instant and someone's life has changed forever. The patient typically will then get hospitalized, have surgery to decompress the area that's injured, and then they're on the road to recovery. The only treatment is rehabilitation and exercise, and they push themselves to remake as many connections as possible. Still, that repair typically plateaus around six to nine months after their injury. And the level of function they regained during that period is where they'll be for the rest of their lives, unfortunately."
 "NVG-291 is a product that aims to promote natural repair. When you damage, say, you cut your finger or break your foot, your body repairs itself very easily. When you damage your central nervous system, your body protects itself very well and inhibits repair, actually. Our drug targets one of those mechanisms that inhibit repair, turns it off, and allows the body to repair itself naturally."
#NervGenPharma #SCI #SpinalCordInjury #SpinalNews #SpinalInjury #Paralysis #NerveRepair #CNS
NervGen.com
Download the transcript here

Matt Cronin, Founding Partner of House of Kaizen, discusses how patients' changing healthcare expectations are shaped by their experiences with products and services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Consumers now expect a longer-term relationship and personalized experiences with their healthcare providers. House of Kaizen emphasizes the importance of building better customer experiences in health and wellness to improve health outcomes and create more value for businesses. In the age of AI, the importance of trust and brand reputation is paramount. Healthcare providers, as the trusted source of information and a filter for web-based searches, play a crucial role in this landscape. 
Matt elaborates, "We're a specialized consulting firm for recurring revenue products and services. We build loyalty and advocacy for better lifetime value through customer experience optimization. We do this for all kinds of businesses that operate on a recurring revenue model, which includes many products and services in the health and wellness space. It's a space we've been working in for over 20 years. It's an area where we see a ton of leadership but also a ton of potential in understanding a longer-term customer journey. A true relationship, as opposed to a singular point with the transaction, actually can be a real advantage and an opportunity to set yourself apart from the competitors in the market space."
"When it comes to health and wellness, we have, of course, the healthcare scenario where people have recurring relationships with their physicians, they have recurring relationships with the healthcare systems in which they operate with their insurance companies. But they also have recurring relationships with the products that they may use, like software technology or hardware technology, the news and information that they consume related to their health and wellness, as well as replenishable products like the foods, drinks, supplements, medication, all of those things can make up their portfolio of health and wellness that is a long-term relationship."
#HouseofKaizen #PatientFirst #PatientExperience #HealthcareInnovation #HealthcareMarketing
houseofkaizen.com
Listen to the podcast here

Matt Cronin, Founding Partner of House of Kaizen, discusses how patients' changing healthcare expectations are shaped by their experiences with products and services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Consumers now expect a longer-term relationship and personalized experiences with their healthcare providers. House of Kaizen emphasizes the importance of building better customer experiences in health and wellness to improve health outcomes and create more value for businesses. In the age of AI, the importance of trust and brand reputation is paramount. Healthcare providers, as the trusted source of information and a filter for web-based searches, play a crucial role in this landscape. 
Matt elaborates, "We're a specialized consulting firm for recurring revenue products and services. We build loyalty and advocacy for better lifetime value through customer experience optimization. We do this for all kinds of businesses that operate on a recurring revenue model, which includes many products and services in the health and wellness space. It's a space we've been working in for over 20 years. It's an area where we see a ton of leadership but also a ton of potential in understanding a longer-term customer journey. A true relationship, as opposed to a singular point with the transaction, actually can be a real advantage and an opportunity to set yourself apart from the competitors in the market space."
"When it comes to health and wellness, we have, of course, the healthcare scenario where people have recurring relationships with their physicians, they have recurring relationships with the healthcare systems in which they operate with their insurance companies. But they also have recurring relationships with the products that they may use, like software technology or hardware technology, the news and information that they consume related to their health and wellness, as well as replenishable products like the foods, drinks, supplements, medication, all of those things can make up their portfolio of health and wellness that is a long-term relationship."
#HouseofKaizen #PatientFirst #PatientExperience #HealthcareInnovation #HealthcareMarketing
houseofkaizen.com
Download the transcript here

Dr. Mollie Leoni, Executive Vice President for Clinical Development of Kura Oncology, discusses the company's ziftomenib program, a menin inhibitor for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The company initially allowed all AML patients to participate in the clinical study, but later found that specific subtypes, such as those with NPM1 mutation or KMT2A rearrangement, were more likely to respond to the menin inhibitor. They also discovered other subtypes that were responsive, expanding the potential patient population. Understanding the role of menin and menin inhibitors in addressing abnormal gene expression and promoting healthy cell development opens the door to potential combination therapy, where menin inhibitors could be layered onto existing treatments for various cancers related to menin independence.
Mollie explains, "In oncology, we have gotten good at treating the end state, but cancer has many, many causes with a common final endpoint to the way the cells look. So, it's many, many different diseases all at once. We've learned and are learning that with better technology and a better understanding of cancer in general we can identify not just how to stop the end state but how to stop it from starting."
"That's where ziftomenib comes in. Ziftomenib addresses key mutations that when they occur, are what cause the development of cancer. So you're able to shut down the development and force the cells to develop normally rather than waiting until they're already diseased and killing them with chemotherapy or some other cytotoxic agent."
"There is a protein complex that we refer to as the menin MLL complex, which goes rogue when something unusual happens in the cell. For example, that could be an NPM1 mutation. That could be a KMT2A rearrangement. Those are two things that are well-known to happen within AML diseases. It could also be a SETD2 RUNX1 mutation. So many types of mutations could happen that could cause this machinery to go rogue within the cell. And that complex causes genes to become active at levels and at times that are abnormal."
#KuraOncology #Ziftomenib #MeninInhibitors #PrecisionMedicine #BTD #AML
KuraOncology.com
Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Mollie Leoni, Executive Vice President for Clinical Development of Kura Oncology, discusses the company's ziftomenib program, a menin inhibitor for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The company initially allowed all AML patients to participate in the clinical study, but later found that specific subtypes, such as those with NPM1 mutation or KMT2A rearrangement, were more likely to respond to the menin inhibitor. They also discovered other subtypes that were responsive, expanding the potential patient population. Understanding the role of menin and menin inhibitors in addressing abnormal gene expression and promoting healthy cell development opens the door to potential combination therapy, where menin inhibitors could be layered onto existing treatments for various cancers related to menin independence.
Mollie explains, "In oncology, we have gotten good at treating the end state, but cancer has many, many causes with a common final endpoint to the way the cells look. So, it's many, many different diseases all at once. We've learned and are learning that with better technology and a better understanding of cancer in general we can identify not just how to stop the end state but how to stop it from starting."
"That's where ziftomenib comes in. Ziftomenib addresses key mutations that when they occur, are what cause the development of cancer. So you're able to shut down the development and force the cells to develop normally rather than waiting until they're already diseased and killing them with chemotherapy or some other cytotoxic agent."
"There is a protein complex that we refer to as the menin MLL complex, which goes rogue when something unusual happens in the cell. For example, that could be an NPM1 mutation. That could be a KMT2A rearrangement. Those are two things that are well-known to happen within AML diseases. It could also be a SETD2 RUNX1 mutation. So many types of mutations could happen that could cause this machinery to go rogue within the cell. And that complex causes genes to become active at levels and at times that are abnormal."
#KuraOncology #Ziftomenib #MeninInhibitors #PrecisionMedicine #BTD #AML
KuraOncology.com
Download the transcript here