Aikang Weishi Files IPO Prospectus: Building a Comprehensive Oncology Healthcare Ecosystem from a Patient Community Foundation

In the mobile health market, vertical medical sectors are becoming the focus of attention, with oncology-focused apps emerging in large numbers. Research by relevant institutions indicates that, based on patient population estimates, the oncology market size will exceed RMB 300 billion, presenting significant market opportunities in the mobile health oncology niche. The most representative example is Kang’ai Weishi App, China’s earliest and largest internet healthcare platform dedicated to oncology.

Jiang Zuochen, CEO of Kang Ai Wei Shi

Exploration of Internet Healthcare Models Beyond Light Consultations

Unlike internet healthcare products for other conditions, oncological diseases cannot be directly resolved through images or phone consultations, as is often possible in specialties such as dermatology and gynecology.

Jiang Zuochen stated that the light consultation model is difficult to develop in depth within the oncology field. Patient-physician engagement on mobile health products for oncology is generally relatively low. For oncological diseases, deep interaction and communication between patients and physicians are required; therefore, the product logic differs from that of other categories, necessitating the exploration of business models better suited to the development of the oncology healthcare market.

“Kangai Weishi aims to address the relational dynamics among the B-end, D-end, and C-end. The B-end refers to upstream and downstream enterprises in the oncology industry chain; the D-end comprises hospitals and medical institutions; and the C-end represents end-user patients. Various enterprises require channels to connect with patients and deliver medical products, while cancer patients are in urgent need of high-quality medicines and medical resources. As a platform, Kangai Weishi will facilitate connections among all these stakeholders,” said Jiang Zuochen.

A critical issue for medical products is trust. How to build patients' trust in Kang'ai Weishi and ensure the purity of the Kang'ai Weishi platform will directly impact the product's development.

Kangai Weishi employs keyword monitoring and manual review in its backend to specifically detect abnormal user behaviors, such as advertising and marketing activities, on the platform. Upon detection of any such irregularities, accounts are immediately suspended. Through this combination of manual oversight and technological measures, Kangai Weishi aims to provide patients with a clean and trustworthy medical environment.

For medical institutions that partner with Kangai Weishi, Kangai Weishi will review their qualifications and collect a certain amount of security deposit to protect patients' interests.

When asked whether he had considered recruiting a large ground-promotion team to market the product, Jiang Zuochen candidly stated, “Kangai Weishi does not require such an extensive ground-promotion force; our team is likely very small compared to those of other similar products. With my background in the internet industry, I prefer to adopt an internet-driven approach to product development.”

According to VCBeat, Kangai Weishi previously offered free medical services to cancer patients via WeChat, organized the “Dstrong” charity relay campaign on Weibo for Dorian, an American boy with cancer, and conducted charitable drug donation programs through the Kangai Weishi app. These initiatives represent some of Kangai Weishi’s explorations and attempts in product promotion.

Cancer Guardian 4.0: A Preliminary Attempt at Smart Healthcare

“Kang’ai Weishi will develop with precision medicine as its main focus in the future. Cancer treatment, being a form of personalized therapy, must necessarily be precise. In the future, Kang’ai Weishi will be a platform based on precision medicine, where smart healthcare and digital healthcare coexist,” said Jiang Zuochen.

Smart healthcare refers to the use of the internet and other technological means to provide intelligent assistance to patients and their families. Currently, most mobile health products on the market offer content, information, and medical services, while smart healthcare will be developed around these core components.

Compared with Version 3.0, Anti-Cancer Guardian Version 4.0 has optimized its information retrieval function, enabling search results to be displayed from multiple dimensions. Furthermore, the informational content and diagnostic and treatment services provided by Anti-Cancer Guardian will be matched based on patients’ demographic and clinical characteristics. In Jiang Zuochen’s vision, this represents the first phase of smart healthcare.

To ensure the accuracy and effectiveness of its content, Kangai Weishi has implemented corresponding measures. On the Kangai Weishi platform, numerous Ph.D. researchers and physicians specializing in oncology contribute content. The platform engages over 200 part-time contributors, while its operations team consists of more than 20 members, most of whom have medical backgrounds. This team is responsible for proofreading and reviewing articles, as well as verifying their sources and references. The content team is the second-largest department at Kangai Weishi, surpassed only by the technical team.

Digital healthcare, as the name suggests, refers to big data-driven healthcare. Due to the specific characteristics of China’s medical environment, it is challenging to build oncology big data from the physician side. Kangai Weishi, with its large user base, aims to construct oncology big data from the patient perspective to support smart healthcare.

It is difficult for cancer patients to communicate directly with doctors via the internet to resolve their issues, whereas oncology big data offers a potential pathway. Kangai Weishi aims to address this challenge through smart healthcare in the future.

Kang’ai Weishi has established a dedicated big data team responsible for the analysis and processing of oncology data. Transforming oncology big data from analytical insights into tangible products is a lengthy endeavor. However, after securing investment from Caijin Capital, Kang’ai Weishi accelerated the formation of its big data team and the pace of research and development, aiming to establish a unique competitive barrier in the field of oncology big data.

Jiang Zuochen, CEO of Kangai Weishi (Cancer Fighter), stated, “The Kangai Weishi app has already accumulated big data from 200,000 cancer patients. Kangai Weishi is destined to become a big data-driven enterprise. Leveraging oncology big data can not only provide reference support for precision medicine but also help interpret and predict trends in cancer diseases.”

Full-Course Concierge Service for Cancer Care

Recently, the Kangai Weishi (Cancer Guardian) APP officially launched version 4.0, prominently featuring the intelligent “Cancer Care Steward” concept, through which users can access comprehensive cancer care solutions. Concurrently, it has initiated end-to-end assistance services, providing holistic support to cancer patients in need across multiple dimensions, including financial aid, medical services, and supportive products.

To date, Kangai Weishi has focused on three core concepts. The first is “Cancer-Fighting Town,” designed to address patients’ need for peer communication by providing a space for interaction and sharing. The second is precision medicine, the key focus of Kangai Weishi 3.0, which aims to guide patients on how to appropriately treat cancer through the construction of a precision medicine platform. In the latest version, Kangai Weishi 4.0, the emphasis is on the “Cancer Care Steward” service. According to Jiang Zuochen’s vision, this service enables patients to conveniently access comprehensive, end-to-end medical care through Kangai Weishi.

The concept of “Cancer Care Steward” in the Anti-Cancer Guardian App 4.0 is realized through three major functional matrices: diversified medical services covering all stages of patient diagnosis and treatment, whereby users can obtain disease management solutions and corresponding medical services by updating their case information; meanwhile, through the “Online Doctor” feature, users can schedule appointments with leading oncology experts in China at the click of a button, enabling multi-dimensional interaction and communication with these specialists; “Precision Information” leverages big data and intelligent analysis of user attributes and behaviors to match site-wide content and deliver targeted recommendations. In addition, version 4.0 has established an e-commerce platform tailored specifically for the cancer community, meeting users’ needs for relevant products related to cancer care.

As shown in the interface of the Kang’ai Weishi (Cancer Guardian) app, the medical services provided include overseas medical treatment, nutritional support, cancer screening, interpretation of diagnostic reports, expert consultations, genetic testing, rehabilitation therapy, and medication access channels.

According to Jiang Zuochen, Kangai Weishi (Cancer Guardian) now has a team of more than ten people dedicated to business negotiations. For instance, among 31 genetic testing companies currently in discussions, collaborations have been secured with seven, and 14 are on the verge of signing agreements. Precision medicine is inseparable from genetic testing companies, and Kangai Weishi is advancing partnerships both domestically and internationally, while also making initial efforts to help these companies reach their customers. By the end of last year, Kangai Weishi had launched over 1,000 genetic testing services; by the end of May, this number had reached 3,000. Jiang Zuochen projects that the figure will reach 6,000 to 7,000 by the end of this year and surpass 20,000 in 2017.

For instance, although Dian Diagnostics currently serves primarily hospitals, it also aims to attract more patients directly. In this regard, Kang’ai Weishi acts as a platform to support these efforts by providing access to a large pool of precisely targeted users. Furthermore, Kang’ai Weishi has established a presence in health check-ups, pre-cancer screening, rehabilitation, insurance, and psycho-oncology services. Jiang Zuochen expects that the number of partner institutions will exceed 300 by the end of this year.

The Arduous Startup Journey of Anti-Cancer Guardian

Kangai Weishi also underwent a major upheaval. During the startup’s early days, it faced severe cash flow constraints, leaving it unable to pay salaries for several months. At one point, Jiang Zuochen addressed the team in a meeting, stating that Kangai Weishi would ultimately succeed and urging everyone to persevere, while adding that those who wished to leave would not be held back. Subsequently, more than half of the employees departed, leaving only twelve. The Kangai Weishi team worked overtime for several consecutive months in a modest residential house and finally secured angel investment. Later, the company successfully closed two additional funding rounds, relocated from the residential house to an office building, and expanded its team to over seventy members. The original twelve who stayed on have since become core pillars of the organization.

“Without their initial persistence, there might not be today’s ‘Cancer-Fighting Guardian,’” Jiang Zuochen remarked with emotion.

For a period, intensified market competition led to unrest among employees. During that time, Jiang Zuochen emphasized the importance of refining our products and strengthening internal capabilities. “There are two critical factors for the development of startups: one is the team, and the other is whether you are truly dedicated.”

Jiang Zuochen cited an example: The father of one user was diagnosed with advanced cancer and approached Kang’ai Weishi (Cancer Guardian) in hopes of accessing overseas medical services. After the Kang’ai Weishi team communicated with both domestic and international medical institutions regarding the patient’s condition, they advised that overseas treatment was unnecessary. However, the patient’s family still insisted on pursuing care abroad. Ultimately, when the patient was referred to an overseas medical institution, it confirmed that there were indeed no better treatment options available for this case. Later, the patient’s family referred five additional patients requiring overseas medical services to Kang’ai Weishi.

“When you put your heart into creating a product, users can sense it,” said Jiang Zuochen.

“Steadfastness” was the word Jiang Zuochen mentioned most frequently during the interview. Perhaps due to his prior experience battling cancer, he places great emphasis on content quality and user experience. Jiang Zuochen hopes that his employees will not merely face a pile of cold, hard numbers, but will genuinely perceive what patients need most.

“We have an operations director who initially felt at a loss, because we do not need to pursue market first-mover advantages, engage in keyword optimization, or aggressively drive user acquisition and activation. Instead, our focus is on delivering more valuable services to users. Every month, we send colleagues to hospitals to interact with cancer patients. In a sense, the patients’ circumstances are more compelling than any points I might emphasize in company meetings. When employees see these patients firsthand, they gain a clear understanding of what they should be doing.”

Kangai Weishi has accumulated approximately 1.5 million registered users, including over 2,000 registered oncologists. By focusing on information matching, medical services, and psychological counseling, Kangai Weishi aims to provide comprehensive disease management services, thereby improving patients’ quality of life and extending their survival. Currently, Kangai Weishi has officially launched its Series B financing round.