HCG’s Vision for 2025 and beyond: Taking value-based cancer care to the next level

HCG has been at the forefront of the cancer care mega evolution with many innovative methods to bring multidisciplinary expertize, advanced molecular and genetic diagnostics, and hub-and-spoke based patient outreach, to deliver evidence-based, personalized, and value-based medicine.

2024 was an year of breakthrough feats and pioneering initiatives for HCG, whether the strategic acquisition of Indore-based SRJ CBCC Cancer Hospital, ground-breaking pilot study combining standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy with low-dose Nivolumab immunotherapy, the coveted recognition at the Dun and Bradstreet ESG Leadership Summit, or our pioneering collaboration with Accenture to transform cancer research and care through the integration of cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, including generative AI and deep learning.

Looking ahead, we will strive to bring more parity in personalized cancer care at all our centers across India. We continue to be guided by the altruistic vision of making cancer care accessible and affordable for patients, irrespective of their social and economic stratification. In terms of numbers, we seek to reach out to more than 50 percent of cancer patients in India through our hub-and-spoke model, our engine of clinical excellence, as also growth and sustainability. Our dominant regions would be Karnataka and Gujarat, but going forward, we plan to deepen our presence in Maharashtra, Orissa, and West Bengal, and also create new spokes across North India in key regions like Delhi and Punjab.

We are also committed to creating multiple centers of excellence (CoE). We already have a full-fledged CoE thriving each in Bangalore, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Kolkata, and plan to build a CoE in Cuttack, Orissa. Going against the prevalent norm of multispecialty hospitals, HCG has shown that it is possible to get sustainable cancer care outcomes at par with, or even better than, premier centers of the West, if patients are given the best treatment at the right time, using best of breed talent, knowledge, technology, and infrastructure. Today, our strong presence in nine states is a resounding triumph of our unique focused factory approach and hub-and-spoke model of cancer care.

That our cancer center in Ongole completed 2000+ oncology surgeries is reflective of our phenomenal regional reach, as also value-based care for cancer patients from Tier-II and Tier-III towns of India. 60 percent of our cancer care centers are located in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. We are leveraging advanced technology like enterprise-level medical records, laboratory, radiology and radiation planning systems, digital pathology, and PETCT to seamlessly connect smaller spoke centers with the larger hubs.

Going forward, we will continue to probe complex cancers using molecular and genomic based diagnostics, and key actionable insights from cases of recurrent tumors and mortality. We firmly believe a robust data-driven culture for exploratory variables like tumor mutation burden, tumor infiltrating lymphocytes, and PDL-1 positivity rates provide a credible basis to demonstrate similarities and dissimilarities between Indian and global ethnic groups. Analyzing streaming data to treat Indian and Asian ethnic groups is a key priority for us as we believe Caucasian protocols do not apply to Indian ethnicity. We have already seen remarkable responses in many head and neck cancers.

One key challenge we are working on is how to make our high-end tech solution stack affordable and accessible for the common people of our country. We are working on various modalities to bring down the cost of value-added care for our patients. Having said that, genomics-based precision and personalized medicine will itself bring down the overall cost by making treatment more accurate and more sustainable, thereby minimizing the possibility of disease recurrence to the extent possible.

At HCG, we have institutionalized a culture of innovation across all levels, putting a premium on scientific temper, actionable research, and skill enhancement through our continuing medical and fellowship programs. Research is an integral part of our DNA as reflected by our 100+ publications each year, as also our active participation in clinical trials. Going forward, we will strive to carve a niche as the cancer care destination of choice across all key areas of clinical, research, and academic excellence. Research, publications, and fellowship programs will continue to be the hallmark of HCG in the next three years.

Our tumor board conversations go a long way in enhancing the performance of our preventive oncology packages, organ-specific multi-disciplinary clinics, mortality reviews, organ preservation surgeries, and our hub-and-spoke model of delivery. The knowledge capsules span mainstream topics, specialized spheres like IGRT and IMRT, and emerging areas like precision medicine and stem cell technology. Going forward, the tumor board will play a pivotal role in enabling HCG to employ data-driven technologies toward developing targeted therapies in line with the specific needs of patients.

We envision a future ripe with rapid advances in genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics, which will help us move up the value chain of cancer staging and grading, as also launch more effective and sustainable therapies to scale new heights in value-based cancer care.