Dogtown Media is excited to share that we have been named an awardee in the Improving Detection of Neurotoxicity in Immunotherapies QuickFire Challenge by Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC. This award is a result of our work on the NeurCare app, designed to remotely monitor patients with neurological disorders and provide early detection of neurotoxicity due to CAR T-Cell immunotherapy treatments.

NeurCare

Immunotherapy cancer treatments such as CAR T-cell therapy have revolutionized the field of cancer treatment, offering patients a new hope for remission and cure. However, a major concern with these treatments is the occurrence of neurotoxicity, which can be severe and even fatal if not detected and treated early. Patients can experience symptoms such as aphasia, altered level of consciousness, impaired cognitive skills, motor weakness, seizures, and cerebral edema.

Early detection of neurotoxicity is critical to minimizing the impact of neurological disorders and improving overall health outcomes for patients. To address this issue, we developed the NeurCare mHealth app in collaboration with the National Institutes for Health. The app consists of sixteen tests that measure cognitive, motor, cerebellar, and sensory functions. Patients complete the tests on their smartphone, and the results are streamed to a backend system for analysis. A web-based portal provides physicians and healthcare providers with the ability to easily identify severe deterioration as well as track longitudinal patient test data.

NeurCare is designed to monitor patients with Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, and Alzheimer’s, as well as provide early detection of neurotoxicity due to CAR T-Cell immunotherapy treatments. The app’s ability to detect neurotoxicity events in patients undergoing immunotherapies has the potential to significantly improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs.

QuickFire Challenge Award

We were recently named an awardee  by Johnson & Johnson Innovation, together with Janssen Global Services, in  the Improving Detection of Neurotoxicity in Immunotherapies QuickFire Challenge. The challenge was aimed at identifying methods and technologies that enable early detection of neurotoxic events in patients undergoing immunotherapies within the hematologic malignancy space.

 As an awardee, Dogtown Media will receive grant funding, access to the global Johnson & Johnson Innovation–JLABS network, and mentorship from experts across The Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies.

Improving Patient Outcomes

We are proud to have been named an awardee in this challenge, and we believe that the NeurCare app has the potential to revolutionize patient care for immunotherapies within the hematologic malignancy space. Our app is designed to seamlessly integrate into healthcare settings and existing patient care models, making it accessible to a wide range of patients.

The app’s potential impact is significant, as it can help identify clinical manifestations to predict acute toxicities, including movement and neurocognitive disorders. The app’s accuracy in detecting and characterizing clinical manifestations, with a specific interest in variations in handwriting including micrographia, dysgraphia, and agraphia, make it a valuable tool for physicians and healthcare providers.

We are pleased to have been named an awardee in the Improving Detection of Neurotoxicity in Immunotherapies QuickFire Challenge. We are confident that our NeurCare app has the potential to significantly improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs by enabling early detection of neurotoxic events in patients undergoing immunotherapies within the hematologic malignancy space. We look forward to continuing our work in this area.