Equal Care Across Finland

by AstraZeneca

At AstraZeneca stand we will provide key insights to the challenge on Friday at 20:00

Help ensure equitable and effective cancer care for everyone in Finland.

Identify where the cancer care pathway can be strengthened – is it through earlier detection, smoother referrals between health centers and hospitals, or faster treatment initiation?

Develop a nationwide, AI-powered solution to support equal and effective cancer care across Finland.

Introduction

AstraZeneca is inviting you to explore where cancer care pathways can be strengthened and identify a solution that could improve equal cancer care across Finland.

The Challenge

The challenge is ensuring equal and effective cancer care in a rapidly changing environment. Ensure that time to diagnosis is optimal and patients start treatment within target timeframes, wherever they live in Finland.

Build an AI-powered system that supports equal and effective cancer care across Finland.

Your solution should:

Identify the gap. Detect differences in access to cancer care or treatment outcomes.
Locate the gap in the care pathway. Show where the difference emerges: detection, referral from primary to specialist care, diagnosis, or treatment initiation.
Recommend what to do. This is the most important part. Provide concrete, evidence-based improvement proposals that could be implemented at national or account level across Finland. Diagnosing the problem is not enough. Show how it could be addressed.

Possible Solutions

The format is open. Possible solutions include:

An AI analyst that explains indicator trends and proposes actions.
A monitoring dashboard with recommendations.
An early-warning system for emerging delays.
A simulation showing the potential impact of an intervention.

Minimum Requirements

Use reliable evidence. Base your findings on public data and/or insights gathered from AstraZeneca mentors. Clearly show the sources supporting every claim.
Address Goal 3. Cover at least one indicator connected to Goal 3 of the national cancer strategy.
Provide actionable recommendations. Deliver concrete improvement proposals, not just an analysis.
Demonstrate a working solution. Submit a working demo. Slides alone are not sufficient.

Insight

Insights and Areas of Interest

Three known bottlenecks provide a useful starting point:

Late detection: Cancer may not be identified early enough.
The transition from primary to specialist care: Referrals may be delayed or not progress smoothly.
The time from diagnosis to treatment: Patients may not start treatment within the recommended target timeframes.

A Note on Data

Data on cancer care in Finland is limited, and addressing this data gap is part of the challenge. Expect to combine publicly available sources with insights gathered through conversations with our experts.

A strong solution should make a complex situation clear and actionable for a non-technical decision-maker in less than two minutes.

Beyond Junction

AstraZeneca would like to explore promising solutions beyond Junction, ideally through a follow-up project in collaboration with a Finnish wellbeing services county.

Resources

Mentors and Contact Persons

AstraZeneca experts from oncology, medical affairs and diagnostics will be available to support participants.

Mentor Availability

Friday, November 13 – from 18:00 onwards

Hanna Rusila – Marketing
Hanna Toivola – Diagnostics
Kaisa Kaitila – Medical Affairs
Laura Aaltonen – Marketing
Joanna Tuormaa – Business Excellence

Saturday, November 14 – during the day

Kaisa Kaitila – Medical Affairs

Sunday, November 15 – 14:00, judging

Hanna Rusila – Marketing
Laura Aaltonen – Marketing
Joanna Tuormaa – Business Excellence

Contacts

Main contact: Joanna Tuormaa, Innovation and Business Excellence Director, Nordics, AstraZeneca

For questions: Laura Aaltonen, +358 40 535 8447

Resources Provided

Resource	Details
Background pack	An overview of how cancer care currently works in Finland. (In Finnish)
Source list	A curated selection of reports, statistics, and articles on cancer care in Finland.
Implementation roadmap	An indepth implementation roadmap for cancer care for 2026 -- 2031. (In Finnish)
Public data sources	Publicly available data from the Finnish Cancer Registry and THL regional health indicators.
Mentoring	AstraZeneca experts will be available on-site to answer questions and participate as interview partners.

Data note: This challenge uses public, aggregate data only. No patient-level or personal data will be provided or required. https://files.hackjunction.app/resources/Kansallinen_syopastrategia_2026_2035_FINAL.pdf https://files.hackjunction.app/resources/Kansallinen_syopastrategia_toimeenpanon_tiekartta_2026_2031.pdf https://files.hackjunction.app/resources/Sy%C3%B6p%C3%A4strategiat%20ja%20sy%C3%B6p%C3%A4data_linkkikokoelma.pdf