Jim Foote, CEO and Founder of First Ascent Biomedical a pioneer in functional precision medicine (FPM) that aims to eliminate guesswork from cancer treatment.

After losing his son to cancer, Jim left a career in cybersecurity to build a data-driven platform that combines AI, robotics and real-time tumour testing to help doctors choose the right therapy for each patient.

In this episode, we explore how FPM differs from traditional genomics-only testing, why tumours can respond differently even with the same patient and how AI can support rather than replace clinicians in treatment decisions.

Jim also shares the economic impact of ineffective therapies, the challenges of scaling regulatory innovation in oncology, and why the future of cancer care depends on personalisation at the  cellular level.

Timestamps:

[00:00:45] What Is Functional Precision Medicine?

[00:02:00] Jim’s Personal Journey from Tech to Healthcare

[00:05:50] Overcoming Regulatory and Systemic Gatekeepers

[00:08:13] From Reactive Care to Personalised Treatment

[00:09:08] What Lab Findings Reveal about Cancer Cells

[00:10:30] Why Genomics Alone Isn’t Enough

[00:12:03] AI as Decision Support Not a Decision Maker

[00:15:55] Cancer in Younger Populations and Misconceptions

[00:20:25] Reducing Cost and Waste in Cancer Treatment

[00:26:34] What Success Really Means to Jim Foote

Connect with Jim - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-foote/

Learn more about First Ascent Biomedical - https://www.linkedin.com/company/firstascentbio/

Get in touch with Karandeep Badwal - https://www.linkedin.com/in/karandeepbadwal/

Follow Karandeep on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@KarandeepBadwal

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