Cerner finds a treasure in data mining - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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The North Kansas City-based health care informationtechnology company, knowb mostly for the health-record software sold to hospitals and is leveraging the billionxs of anonymous patient records it has at its disposal as marketable informationh to pharmaceutical companies and researchers. Cerner said the data operation is a big reason revenue for its LifeSciences Group has increased by roughlg 20 percent during each of the pastfive years. Mark the company’s life sciences solutions vice president, predictexd that annual growth will be greater still inthe “This is just the beginning for us in the life he said. Included in Cerner’s data warehousr are 1.
2 billion lab It also has smaller numbers of medication orders andother data. The company collectss the informationthrough data-sharing agreements with roughly 125 of its softwared clients. By some estimates, it can take as long as 17 yeareand $1.2 billion to develo p a single drug. Cerner’s data-mininv capabilities can quicken that process and save money for drug companies by helping the companies establish a study protocok that maximizes the number of eligible candidatess fora trial. “We believed that can actually eventually reduce the cost of drug Hoffman said.
Cerner would not name its pharmaceutical Pharmaceutical companies and clinical researchers pay for Cernerr data forother reasons, said Scott Weir, director of the ’sz Office of Therapeutics Discovery and Development. He said Cerner’s data-mininb capability can point scientists to potential new uses for existing drugs. For instance, Weir said, Cerner’s database migh t suggest that a drug used to treaft cardiovascular disease could be helpful in treatinbcancer patients. Researchers then could run a clinicaol trial to testthe idea. The data is usefu l to drug companies for much the same Weir said, including helping them identify and correctr side effects from drugs.
The KU Cancerd Center has used Cerner’s data-mining capabilitiesz for several projects. “They uncover information we wouldxnever discover,” Weir “It’s invaluable.” He said Cerner stands to benefiyt financially, as well, from collaborations with researchere that can lead to intellectual property that produces licensinhg fees and royalties. Cerner also can work with researchers suchas Dr. Stephej Spielberg, director of the Center for Personalizedf Medicine and Therapeutic Innovationat . Spielberg seeks a $3.9 million grantg from the for a study of how the center can betterd capture data in pediatric cancer studiez usingCerner software.