MITA Comments on Cancer Moonshot Applauds Dr Renee Wegrzyn's Appointment to Lead ARPA-H

Washington, D.C. – The Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance (MITA) – the leading trade association representing manufacturers of medical imaging equipment, radiopharmaceuticals, contrast media, and focused ultrasound therapeutic devices – issued the following statement applauding the Biden Administration’s Cancer Moonshot initiative update and the appointment of Dr. Renee Wegrzyn to be the inaugural Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H).

“The role of innovative technologies, such as Focused Ultrasound and emerging AI algorithms, in diagnosing disease earlier and treating conditions less invasively and more precisely is changing care rapidly,” said Patrick Hope, Executive Director, MITA. “ARPA-H has the potential to build on today’s innovations to continue to transform how we diagnose and treat diseases. We congratulate Dr. Wegrzyn on her appointment and look forward to working with her to advance patient access to cutting-edge diagnostics.”

MITA also reiterated its support for the Cancer Cabinet’s priority actions, most notably initiatives to address health disparities caused by delayed or skipped cancer screenings. Regular screenings catch disease when it’s most treatable, however, the reduction in screenings during the pandemic is widespread and dangerous. That’s exactly why MITA has joined provider partners to encourage Americans to return to care.

“The trend of patients skipping cancer screenings due to the pandemic is a ticking time bomb for too many Americans,” added Hope. “We commend the Administration’s call to action on cancer screening to jumpstart progress on screenings that were missed in recent years.”