Andrew Lacy, the founder and CEO of Prenuvo, emphasizes the importance of having comprehensive health information. Prenuvo specializes in providing full-body MRI scans to detect early signs of diseases like cancer and aneurysms.
Speaking at Fortune’s Brainstorm Health conference, Lacy highlighted the lack of health information available to the average person. He believes preventive medicine is crucial in addressing this issue.
Lacy pointed out that the current health system often fails to detect diseases until they reach an advanced stage, leading to steep declines in health and increased medical costs. He stressed that diseases like cancer develop gradually over time, often without symptoms.
According to Lacy, providing individuals with a detailed understanding of their health is essential for improving both their quality and length of life. He believes there is a need for more data to achieve this goal.
The panel discussion, moderated by Fortune’s senior health and wellness reporter Alexa Mikhail, featured Lacy, Daisy Robinton (cofounder and CEO of Oviva Therapeutics), and Alina Su (cofounder and CEO of Generation Lab).
Su emphasized the importance of making health knowledge accessible to everyone, empowering individuals to take control of their well-being.
However, Robinton highlighted a significant challenge in interpreting biomedical data: the lack of diversity in research samples, particularly regarding women and people of color. She stressed the need to address this issue to improve healthcare decision-making.
Robinton also expressed optimism about the future, expecting significant improvements in data diversity and its impact on understanding human health in the next five to ten years.