Astellas awarded $200,000 in total grants and resources to winners of the fourth annual Changing Cancer Care prize, a challenge that funds ideas beyond medicine to improve cancer care for patients, caregivers and their loved ones.
Audrey Guth, founder of Nanny Angel Network in Toronto, was chosen as the 2019 Grand Prize winner.
Guth, a cancer survivor and mother of four, established the Nanny Angel Network in 2009 after she found a gap in healthcare and social services for mothers with cancer and their children. The program provides stability, normalcy, and support during a challenging time. Nanny Angel Network trains volunteers to care for children whose mothers have cancer.
This year’s challenge awarded four prizes totaling $200,000 in funds (one grand prize of $100,000, two $45,000 Innovation prizes, and one Emerging Ideas prize of $10,000). Along with the funding, all winners will have the opportunity to attend TEDMED 2020 as TEDMED Scholars.
The winners will receive a yearlong membership to MATTER, a global healthcare startup incubator.
The 2019 Innovation Prize winners are:
Daniella Koren, founder of Arches Technology, whose idea is to expand a digital patient education and engagement program called MyCareCompass that provides information and evidence-based education to people impacted by cancer throughout their treatment journey.
Leslie Schover, founder of Will2Love, whose idea is to tailor self-help programs for men and women to meet the needs of special populations including younger survivors and LGBTQ survivors. Will2Love provides online education and guidance to help people impacted by cancer overcome problems with sexual health and fertility, trains oncology professionals to better manage these problems, and consults with hospitals to establish reproductive health programs.
Astellas introduced a new Emerging Ideas prize to recognize ideas that need additional cultivation before implementation. Abby Westerman of b-present Foundation was selected for this prize and also presented at the live pitch event. Westerman plans to use the Emerging Ideas prize to extend the reach of b-there, a web-based patient and supporter connection tool to lower the barrier for young adults with cancer to stay connected with friends, offering a way to control visits, convey status updates, and request needed items.
