The Blue Jacket Fashion Show: Q&A with Biljana Naumovic of J&J

Biljana Naumovic, president of US Oncology Solid Tumor at Johnson & Johnson, spoke with Pharmaceutical Executive about her work with Johnson & Johnson to spread awareness around the importance of early diagnosis for prostate cancer. According to her, this cancer is one of the leading causes of death in men and is often missed during the early stages due to a lack of proper testing.

Pharmaceutical Executive: Can you discuss the Blue Jacket Fashion Show?
Biljana Naumovic: We have been involved in the Blue Jacket Fashion Show now for almost a decade. It is part of our dedication to the prostate cancer community and is a very unique program that brings forward the discussion around prostate cancer and the need to diagnose early in an unconventional way, but way that is necessary in order for us to freely talk and to normalize the discussion around the needs to diagnose and to treat prostate cancer. It is also something that we strive to do. We have been committed to get in front of cancer at Johnson & Johnson, where we have an ambition to transform the way cancer is treated. The vision we have set for ourselves is to ultimately eliminate cancer, one cancer type at a time. One of the ways that we can attack that is to get in front of cancer very early on, while also supporting the communities that are more gravely affected by prostate cancer, like African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latino communities, and supporting them in diagnosis. That’s what Blue Jacket Fashion Show is all about.

PE: Do you think that the pharma industry needs to take more unconventional steps to reach underserved communities?
Naumovic: For some things, absolutely yes. Especially around support for early diagnosis and helping people talk about how they can get tested and diagnosed on time. The biggest problem that we have in general is that people get diagnosed too late. There is a stigma that exists in prostate cancer, especially around discussing prostate cancer and getting the tests that are needed early on. I think being unconventional about this supports people in understanding that this really has to be normalized, and we have to take care of our health before it becomes disease.

PE: Which communities are most underserved in prostate cancer?
Naumovic: When you look at prostate cancer overall, it is the second highest incidence of cancer in men. It is also one of the cancer types with increasing incidence in the United States. Within the African American community, the incidence of prostate cancer is about 70% higher in black men versus white men. In the Hispanic community, this is the most common cancer diagnosis among Hispanic men with around 23,000 patients in this community being diagnosed per year in the United States. For Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, the diagnosis rates are not as early as they should be. These are some of the things that are relevant to be understood so that we can address every community in the way that they need to be addressed.