Vascular Health Innovation Summit on Precision Medicine Held on September 22, 2023
Our Vascular Health Innovation Summit is an annual event that seeks agreement from leaders in the medical and research fields on areas that are seen as most pressing and most in need of accelerated attention in the vascular health space – always with the goal of innovating solutions that will improve patient lives. Co-Chairs Mike Conte (UCSF Chief of Division Vascular and Endovascular Surgery) and Manesh Patel (Chief of the Division of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Duke Heart Center) chose precision medicine as the Summit topic because it offers opportunities to leverage – for the good of the patient – today’s rapid advances in biotechnology. It has contributed to ground-breaking innovation in cancer. We explored the roles of data-derived phenotyping, artificial intelligence, and “omics” across vascular disease areas, including peripheral artery disease, venous thrombosis, aortic aneurysms and dissections, and carotid artery disease. Our goal was to map out high-impact projects that prioritize the patient experience, incorporating patient and caregiver perspectives of how vascular health problems must be addressed in the context of health disparities and quality of life priorities. It was exciting to see so many experts come together to achieve better vascular health for all and, based on the success of this year’s Summit, we plan to continue this work in May 2024.