Cancer program strategy and partnerships
Contact our teamConsolidation, competition, and new care models are changing where cancer programs grow, how their networks perform, and which investments make sense.
Chartis helps cancer program leaders make informed choices about where to grow, how to strengthen their networks, and which partnerships and investments will advance their strategic goals. We combine deep oncology expertise with market insights, data analysis, and stakeholder perspectives to develop strategies grounded in each organization’s ambitions, capabilities, and competitive environment.
Cancer program strategy requires an integrated view
Cancer programs are navigating consolidation, changing market dynamics, and increasingly complex networks. Decisions about infusion, 340B, site of service, radiotherapy, and service line integration must work together to support a cohesive strategy for growth and performance.
At the same time, affiliations, joint ventures, physician alignment, and major capital investments can shape a program’s long-term direction. These strategic choices must align with the organization’s goals, market position, and broader cancer strategy.
Shape the future of your cancer program
Chartis brings deep oncology expertise and market insight to the strategic decisions shaping cancer programs. We help leaders define where to grow, strengthen network performance, evaluate partnerships, align physicians, and make investments that advance their long-term goals.
- Define the strategy for growth: We help cancer programs develop a strategic roadmap grounded in their goals, market, and growth opportunities. For one statewide oncology network, this work contributed to a 22% increase in new cancer cases over five years and 102% growth in contribution margin per new cancer case.
- Optimize network performance: We assess ambulatory cancer networks and develop targeted strategies for infusion, 340B, site of service, radiotherapy, and service line integration. Our cancer care performance and access optimization work helps organizations translate these strategies into operational improvements that expand capacity and improve access.
- Build strategic partnerships: We develop strategies for affiliations, JVs, and JOAs between community and NCI-designated cancer centers, aligning partnerships around shared value, market reach, and strategic impact.
- Align oncology physicians: We support partnerships and transactions across medical, radiation, and surgical oncology, including PSAs, MSAs, JVs, and co-management agreements. These structures can strengthen collaboration, integration, and long-term physician alignment.
- Plan for future cancer care: We help organizations plan and execute major capital investments, from destination centers and cancer hospitals to emerging modalities such as proton therapy and CAR-T, positioning cancer programs for their next stage of growth and care delivery.
The hard part of cancer strategy is making choices that hold together. Where you grow shapes the network you need, partnerships influence physician alignment, and major investments need to support the program’s broader direction. Leaders need a strategy that makes those decisions clearer, not a collection of separate plans. ”
Frequently asked questions
How can health systems develop a cancer service line growth strategy?
A cancer service line growth strategy should start with an assessment of the current program, market demand, competitive position, and network performance. From there, leaders can make informed decisions about infusion, radiotherapy, site of service, partnerships, and capital investment and focus resources on the greatest opportunities for growth and impact.
How should health systems plan their cancer care network?
Health systems should plan the cancer care network as an integrated system rather than a collection of individual sites and services. Decisions about infusion, 340B, site of service, radiotherapy, and other services should work together to support access, growth, and performance. Major investments in cancer hospitals, destination centers, proton therapy, and CAR-T should follow that broader network strategy rather than be made in isolation.
How should health systems structure cancer center governance?
Cancer center governance should bring the right clinical, operational, and enterprise leaders together with clear decision rights and accountability. The specific structure will vary by organization, but effective governance should enable coordinated decisions across strategy, growth, investments, physician alignment, and operations while maintaining a clear connection to broader health system priorities.
How can health systems improve oncology physician alignment?
Health systems can improve oncology physician alignment by selecting structures that support the goals of the cancer program and strengthen collaboration across medical, radiation, and surgical oncology. Depending on the organization, that may include professional services agreements, management services agreements, joint ventures, or co-management agreements.
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