Healthcare Goes Hollywood at SXSW Festival

By Joie Healy, Senior Manager of Social Media Communications at Cisco

Cutting-edge technology and inspirational filmmaking have long been hallmarks of the annual SXSW Interactive and Film Festivals in Austin, Texas. True to the spirit of the festivals, during this year’s gathering, the world will get a riveting sneak peek into how wearables, the Internet of Everything and advanced sensor technology are coming together in the fight against breast cancer.

DETECTED, an indie-documentary chronicling the creation, testing and marketing of the cancer-detecting iTBra, will make its world premiere at Cisco's Mimosas and a Movie: How Wearables Could Power Early Cancer Detection. Still in its testing phase, the iTBra is a promising new weapon in the fight against breast cancer, capable of automatically transmitting data from a sensor-equipped bra to a secure patient database. With real-time reporting, the iTBra has the potential to alert doctors and patients to early warning signs of breast cancer. And with early detection comes rapid treatment and hopefully, more breast cancer survivors.

The premiere of the Cisco-funded DETECTED trailer is the perfect opener to a wider discussion about the emerging role wearables are playing in advancing healthcare, something we've blogged and discussed in depth here at Cisco.  After the DETECTED trailer premiere, our own Bob Cooper will explore The Digital Health Communications Revolution during an expert panel discussion. During the discussion, Bob and other panelists will take a deep dive into how personalized, real-time health information transmission affects caregivers, patients and even policy makers.

Mimosas and a Movie: How Wearables Could Power Early Cancer Detection and The Digital Health Communications Revolution panel will both take place on Monday, March 16 in Austin, Texas.

•  Cisco’s Mimosa and a Movie: How Wearables Could Power Early Cancer Detection

             Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill

             303 Red River Street

             Austin, TX 78701

             11:00 a.m.  – 1:30 p.m.

• The Digital Health Communications Revolution

            JW Marriott (Med Tech Stage)

            110 E. 2^nd Street

            Austin, TX 78701

            3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Connected healthcare is projected to become an $8 billion industry within three years. The DETECTED trailer premiere and digital healthcare panel are just the beginning of an ongoing conversation about developments in healthcare technology.

Headed to SXSW? We invite you to join us at these exciting events. You can RSVP for our DETECTED event here.

Following from afar? Join in the conversation using #DetectedMovie, #SXSW and #MedTech hashtags. 

A connected bra capable of detecting breast cancer could soon make this a reality. #DetectedMovie

Can the Internet of Everything Save Lives? Connected Bra Could Detect Cancer

By Blair Christie, Chief Marketing Officer, Cisco

At Cisco, we often talk about the power of the Internet of Everything – to reduce traffic congestion, to refresh our refrigerators, to make our everyday lives more convenient. But now, the Internet of Everything is saving lives.

In 2012 alone, more than 1.7 million women were diagnosed with breast cancer – that’s more than 4,600 women diagnosed with this life-threatening illness every day.

It can be hard to wrap one’s mind around just how common, and equally devastating, cancer can be. It has affected me personally, as well as the lives of my closest family members and friends. When it touches your life, or those around you, the impact is deep and long lasting.

Statistics on the prevalence of breast cancer and the personal stories of those impacted can be frightening, but there is more than just hope. Incredible strides across all forms of cancer are happening, and in many cases, they come in the form of early detection through ground-breaking technology.  

You’ve heard of the Internet of Things (IoT). In fact, you’re probably wearing a FitBit or Jawbone on your wrist. You may be the owner of a smart thermostat like Nest. Or you’ve recently heard the hype about self-driving cars.

These connected devices are changing the way we live, work and play – and there are many more to come.

Today, only 1% of all devices that could be connected to the Internet are connected to the Internet.

By 2020, 20 billion devices will come online, amounting to a $19 trillion market opportunity for businesses and consumers. This next era of the Internet – the Internet of Everything (IoE) – will connect not only things, but also people, process and data to transform how we track our fitness, regulate traffic, conserve energy, tackle poverty and more.

But perhaps most importantly, the Internet of Everything will save lives. And it’s not as far off as you may think.

In 2013, Silicon Valley entrepreneur and scientist Rob Royea was confronted with a powerful question. What if a woman’s bra could take the place of monthly breast exams, alerting her to the potential development of breast cancer? If it were possible, could this technology give doctors and patients more time to react?

Inspired, Rob set off to help launch a technology whose time had come. Unlike healthy cells, cancer cells demonstrate abnormal temperature patterns. Rob and his team at Cyrcadia Health have developed a bra equipped with sensors that read cellular temperatures, transmit data in real-time to a patient database, and alert both doctor and patient to abnormal readings via smartphone. Currently undergoing medical trials, the so-called ‘iT Bra’ is expected to reach the consumer marketplace in 2016. Cyrcadia believes its innovation could reduce the number of unnecessary breast biopsies by up to 50%, especially among women with dense breast tissue, for whom mammography often doesn’t work.  Used as a monthly breast screening system, iT Bra will provide thousands of women early warnings of cancer formation, enabling doctors to implement treatment plans sooner and ultimately saving lives.

Cisco has been following Rob and his team’s efforts closely, as their work is an incredible example of how innovation made possible by the Internet of Everything can change, and ultimately save, lives. We’ve funded documentary filmmaker Ironbound Films to tell Rob’s story in the hopes it will propel further innovation in this next wave of the Internet.

Scheduled for release in late 2015, the documentary ‘DETECTED’ follows Rob and his supporters from concept to manufacture to trial, and then to market. It is a tangible demonstration of how connected technology will change the world. 

While a powerful medical breakthrough, iT bra is only one example of the Internet of Everything at work in the healthcare industry. Innovators are already bringing wearable fitness trackers, heart monitors and smart scales to market. In the next three to five years, the number of health-related connected devices will explode. According to TechNavio, the global connected health market will grow at an annual growth rate of 33 percent by 2019. Parks Associates estimated that device manufacturers will sell more than 70 million personal health and wellness products by 2018, amounting to an $8 billion market.  Soon, data from these devices will be transmitted directly to your physician so he or she can develop a customized health program designed specifically for your needs and lifestyle.

Cisco’s role in this exciting evolution is significant. We will build the foundation that connects all of this technology, ensure your data remains secure, develop communication and collaboration tools that will enable healthcare providers to derive insights from your real-time data, and partner with entrepreneurs to bring innovative ideas to life.

The future is exciting. And for cancer patients, full of hope. We’ve found a ground-breaking example of the positive impact the Internet of Everything will have on our healthcare industry, and invite you to join us on this powerful journey when we unveil ‘DETECTED’ in the coming months.

Stay tuned, and in the meantime, tell us: What do you believe will be the biggest impact from the Internet of Everything?

During the filming of ‘Detected,’ Rob Royea and engineers discuss assembly line processes that will bring the cancer-detecting iT bra to life.

During the filming of ‘Detected,’ radiologists study 3D mammography to better understand dense breast tissue. 

Go behind-the-scenes during the filming of Detected: CEO of Cyrcadia Health Rob Royea meets with breast cancer awareness advocates to discuss the value of regular screening and the problem of dense breast tissue. 

We certainly hope he does.

Follow along as documentary filmmaker Seth Kramer and his team at Ironbound Films tell the story of a bra capable of detecting breast cancer.