Johnson & Johnson’s New “Oncology Care Index” Highlights the Growing Divide Between Cancer Innovation and Implementation in Clinical Practice

HORSHAM, PA (April 29, 2025) – Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) today announced the launch of the “Oncology Care Index,” a comprehensive survey conducted in collaboration with The Harris Poll to identify the challenges healthcare professionals (HCPs) face in delivering the latest innovations to patients. The survey of 500 U.S. oncologists, urologists, and Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) across academic and community settings suggests that the gap between innovation and implementation is widening. 73% of surveyed HCPs say there’s a gap between the availability of new/cutting-edge treatments and their successful implementation in clinical practice.¹ 3 out of 4 oncologists find the pace of new treatment development overwhelming, and 7 out of 10 struggle to navigate the complexities of cancer treatment guidelines.¹

The survey found that HCPs need additional support given the pace of innovation in cancer care. The data also suggest several notable trends:

• Smarter collaboration in a complex landscape is critical. On average, patients interact with at least 5 different healthcare professionals throughout their journey,² and nearly 55% of Americans battling cancer receive treatment in the community oncology setting.³ In this increasingly complex environment, nearly half of HCPs surveyed (49%) said they wish they could increase opportunities to collaborate with their counterparts in academic and community medical settings. More than 9 out of 10 said they would be interested in knowledge-sharing programs, particularly MDs and APPs.¹
  
• AI will empower the future of oncology care. HCPs believe AI has decreased the time it takes to diagnose patients in oncology care by about 20%, on average. However, 91% believe greater education around AI’s potential to reduce oncology care gaps is needed to accelerate its adoption, and 42% said limited information about AI and how to use it is a barrier to implementation.¹
  
• Improving access to innovation is a priority. HCPs were focused on expanding access to innovation, beginning with clinical trials. Seven out of 10 HCPs reported that their practice does not offer a robust range of clinical trial options, and 91% agree that proximity to care is a critical factor in patients’ treatment decisions.¹
  

“In 2024 alone, oncology treatments were approved in the U.S. for more than 50 indications, including 11 first-in-class therapeutics,”⁴ said Dr. Stephen (Fred) Divers, Chief Medical Officer at American Oncology Network.* “These are welcome advancements, but the complexity, from navigating evolving guidelines to placing patients in clinical trials, creates an enormous administrative burden for healthcare professionals on the front lines of cancer care. It’s encouraging to see companies like Johnson & Johnson highlighting these challenges so we can have meaningful conversations about how to solve for them.”

Oncologists, urologists, and APPs are vital in delivering cutting-edge cancer treatments, especially at community care centers. The index highlights the urgent need to close gaps, remove barriers, and ensure every patient, regardless of where they receive care, benefits from the latest medical advancements.

“Johnson & Johnson’s Oncology Care Index confirms what community oncologists have been telling us for years: groundbreaking treatments mean little if they don’t reach patients in time,” said Tom Cavanaugh, Company Group Chairman, North America, Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine. “These oncologists are the backbone of cancer care, treating the majority of patients nationwide, yet they are asked to navigate an unprecedented pace of innovation. As we work to get in front of cancer on behalf of every patient, our goal is to highlight these very real challenges as we work together to champion solutions in the future.”

J&J is sharing insights from the survey to help drive conversations about how to best support healthcare professionals as they work to help bridge the gap between innovation and implementation. Insights will be available on https://www.jnj.com/oncology/oncology-care-index and promoted throughout 2025 through a full campaign, with the goal of advancing conversations and solutions on these important topics.

While there is more to do, J&J is already advancing some solutions to help support HCPs, including programs like Make it HAPPen™, initiatives in AI, and other collaborations that support HCPs.

Learn more about Johnson & Johnson’s Oncology Care Index and explore how J&J is driving change at https://www.jnj.com/oncology/oncology-care-index.

About Johnson & Johnson’s Oncology Care Index
Johnson & Johnson’s Oncology Care Index is a survey that asked healthcare professionals working in oncology to identify the challenges they face in delivering the best care for their patients. The research was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Johnson & Johnson among 500 adults age 18+ who are duly licensed and either hematologists/oncologists, urologists, APPs in hematology/oncology, or APPs in urology. Oncologists and APP oncologists must treat at least 1 patient with blood and 1 patient with solid-state tumor cancer, while urologists and APP urologists must treat at least 1 patient with solid state tumor cancer. The survey was conducted November 21 through December 13, 2024.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in The Harris Poll surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data are accurate to within ± 7.4 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest.

About Johnson & Johnson
At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything. Our strength in healthcare innovation empowers us to build a world where complex diseases are prevented, treated, and cured, where treatments are smarter and less invasive, and solutions are personal. Through our expertise in Innovative Medicine and MedTech, we are uniquely positioned to innovate across the full spectrum of healthcare solutions today to deliver the breakthroughs of tomorrow, and profoundly impact health for humanity. Learn more at https://www.jnj.com/ or at www.janssen.com/johnson-johnson-innovative-medicine. Follow us at @JanssenUS and @JNJInnovMed. Janssen Research & Development, LLC, and Janssen Biotech, Inc., are both Johnson & Johnson companies.

Footnotes
^*Dr. Stephen (Fred) Divers has provided consulting, advisory, and speaking services to Johnson & Johnson; he has not been paid for any media work.

¹ Johnson & Johnson & The Harris Poll. About the Survey: This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Johnson & Johnson, from November 21-December 13, 2024 among 500 adults age 18+ who are duly licensed and either hematologists/oncologists, urologists, APPs in hematology/oncology, or APPs in urology (MDs in Oncology [n=221], MDs in Urology [n=160], Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) in Oncology [n=102], and APPs in Urology [n=17]). Oncologists and APP oncologists treat at least 1 patient with blood and 1 patient with solid-state tumor cancer, while urologists and APP urologists treat at least 1 patient with solid state tumor cancer.

² Varanasi AP, Burhansstipanov L, Dorn C, et al. Patient navigation job roles by levels of experience: Workforce Development Task Group, National Navigation Roundtable. Cancer. 2023;1‐19. doi:10.1002/cncr.35147

³ FACT Sheet: What is Community Oncology? Community Oncology Alliance. https://communityoncology.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/What-is-Comm-Onc.pdf. Accessed February 18, 2025.

⁴ Novel drug approvals for 2024. U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). https://www.fda.gov/drugs/novel-drug-approvals-fda/novel-drug-approvals-2024. January 15, 2025. Accessed February 14, 2025.