WILMINGTON, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Incyte (Nasdaq:INCY) today announced that Massachusetts General Cancer Center is the recipient of the first Incyte Ingenuity Award, an annual program that was created to support people living with graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) by encouraging innovative and novel solutions that address specific challenges facing the GVHD community.
Massachusetts General Cancer Center has been awarded $100,000 to implement its project, Horizon Mobile App for Patients with Chronic GVHD – a patient-centered, multi-component mobile intervention app that aims to improve the quality of life and care of patients with chronic GVHD. The Incyte Ingenuity Award applications were reviewed and evaluated by an independent judging panel consisting of Gerry Cowden, Founder, Meredith Cowden Foundation, Shrina Duggal, Pharm. D., BCOP, Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, and Navneet Majhail, M.D., Director, Blood and Marrow Transplant Program, Cleveland Clinic.
The mobile app will consist of an educational game, which will allow a patient character to navigate through a journey as they cope with their chronic GVHD and monitor their progress. The effectiveness of this app will be evaluated via a pilot program, with consideration for a larger expansion.
“We are honored to receive the Incyte Ingenuity Award, which will support our institution’s efforts to help advance care for GVHD patients,” said Areej El-Jawahri, M.D., Director of the Bone Marrow Transplant Survivorship Program, Massachusetts General Cancer Center. “Specifically, this award will allow us to support our chronic GVHD patients, who represent a vulnerable population that experiences high degrees of physical and functional limitations, impaired quality of life and significant psychological distress, by developing an app focused on the essential self-management and coping skills that are critical to improving their lives.”
In its inaugural year, several nationally renowned cancer research centers, teaching hospitals and patient advocacy groups applied to receive the Incyte Ingenuity Award. Massachusetts General Cancer Center was selected as this year’s award recipient because the judges found it to be the most well-developed application with a clear objective and realistic approach to improving the GVHD patient journey.
“Incyte is honored to help advance this initiative from Massachusetts General Cancer Center, which we believe has the potential to have a significant impact on the experiences of GVHD patients, their caregivers and their health care teams,” said Barry Flannelly, Pharm. D., Executive Vice President and General Manager, North America, Incyte. “The GVHD community’s positive response to the Incyte Ingenuity Award program has been encouraging and underscores the need for ongoing innovation and solutions, and we look forward to seeing the results of this novel project as it is executed over the next year.”
To read more about the winning initiative, and for more information about the Incyte Ingenuity Award, visit www.IncyteIngenuityAward.com.
About GVHD
GVHD is a condition that can occur after an allogeneic stem cell transplant (the transfer of stem cells from a donor) where the donated cells initiate an immune response and attack the transplant recipient’s organs, leading to significant morbidity and mortality. There are two major forms of GVHD, acute and chronic, that can affect multiple organ systems including the skin, gastrointestinal (digestive) tract, lung and liver.1
About Incyte
Incyte is a Wilmington, Delaware-based, global biopharmaceutical company focused on finding solutions for serious unmet medical needs through the discovery, development and commercialization of proprietary therapeutics. For additional information on Incyte, please visit Incyte.com and follow @Incyte.
References
- Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. "Graft-Versus-Host Disease Facts." Available at: https://www.lls.org/treatment/types-of-treatment/stem-cell-transplantation/graft-versus-host-disease. Accessed June 2020.
