Commercialization of a Behavioral Digital Health Program for Individuals with Chronic Pain

2Morrow, Inc. CRP Grant Application – Project Summary: Chronic pain affects roughly 1 in 5 adults. Managing chronic pain is complex, and the reality for most patients is that living a life free of pain is unlikely. Over 50% of patients with chronic pain also experience depression or anxiety, and medical providers often lack the time, training or resources to address these emotional challenges. This can leave patients feeling uncared about and providers feeling frustrated. Despite national guidelines that recommend incorporating scalable behavioral interventions when managing pain, there continues to be an overreliance on addictive pain medications. Given the need for HEAL-aligned pain management options such as behavioral-based treatments, 2Morrow set out to design, develop, and test a novel evidence-based digital behavioral therapeutic for individuals living with chronic pain with FAST-TRACK SBIR HEAL grant funding (#1 R44 AT 11593) aimed at reducing the negative impact of pain on daily life with educational content, skill development, pain awareness tools, and coaching. Our SBIR feasibility RCT study is nearing completion (August 2024) and shows strong engagement, positive feedback, and a decrease in pain interference. Our focus is now shifting to dissemination and commercialization. The landscape for digital therapeutics presents unique challenges, notably in the realms of investment expectations and the absence of established payment and commercialization models. This complexity is compounded by the fact that, typically, it takes about 17 years for evidence-based practices to gain widespread adoption in the medical community. To counter this trend and expedite the integration of our digital therapeutic, we need to validate commercial traction. Thus we are applying for this HEAL Commercialization Readiness Pilot (CRP) Program: Embedded Entrepreneurs for Small Businesses in Pain Management (SB1 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) that will fund the hiring of a Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) to accelerate the dissemination and commercialization of this product by focusing on partner development. Specific Aim 1: Hire a fractional (50% effort) CCO or equivalent experienced professional. Specific Aim 2: During the first 90 days, the CCO will review, validate, and update 2Morrow’s commercialization plan. To do this they will meet with the 2Morrow team, and at least 10 stakeholders or industry experts to 1) understand the landscape and current business models, 2) understand current options and workflow, and 3) validate/refine 2Morrow’s go-to-market strategy. Specific Aim 3: The CCO will execute the commercialization/partnership plan with a focus on advancing a business development pipeline that leads to key milestones such as a signed partnership agreement or strategic investment.