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7 Counterintuitive Secrets from NCCN’s 2025 AI in Cancer Care Summit

When the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) gathers healthcare leaders, people listen. I attended the 2025 Policy Summit on the evolving AI landscape in cancer care—and walked away with insights that were raw, practical, and surprisingly hopeful.

Instead of hype or overpromising, cancer care leaders shared honest strategies for implementing AI responsibly and effectively. In this episode, I break down the 7 counterintuitive secrets they’re using to fast-track adoption—while others remain stuck.

Whether you’re in digital pathology, oncology, or healthcare AI, these lessons matter for your projects.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• 0:04 – Reporting from Washington DC: what the NCCN AI Policy Summit revealed about the real state of AI in cancer care.
• 1:10 – Why NCCN guidelines shape cancer care worldwide.
• 1:36 – Even top cancer centers struggle with AI implementation—why delays and budget overruns are common.
• 3:16 – Secret #1: Stop chasing perfect AI tools—build strategic guardrail frameworks instead.
• 6:20 – Secret #2: Plan for biological drift from day one.
• 9:29 – Secret #3: Target underutilized care areas, not your strongest programs.
• 12:07 – Secret #4: Design AI for patients receiving care, not just providers giving it.
• 16:29 – Secret #5: Follow the pioneers—don’t reinvent from scratch.
• 19:09 – Secret #6: Build flexible systems for evolving regulatory pathways.
• 22:09 – Secret #7: Stop using human-level performance as the gold standard.
• 31:23 – Why integration is now as important as innovation in AI for pathology.
• 34:31 – What’s next: NCCN will publish a report based on these discussions.

THIS EPISODE'S RESOURCES

• NCCN – National Comprehensive Cancer Network
• Episode with Dr. Lija Joseph on patient-pathologist communication
• Aeffner F. et al. – The Gold Standard Paradox in Digital Image Analysis: Manual vs Automated Scoring as Ground Truth
• Artera AI FDA de novo authorization news (August 2025)
• Maryland AI Regulation (effective October 1, 2025)

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with colleagues. Speaking the same language around digital pathology and AI implementation will help us all move forward.

🎧 Thank you for trailblazing with me. Until next time, keep trailblazing however you can.

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