SANTA FE, NM – A new online database being developed looks to provide treatment information for patients suffering from breast cancer, depression, COPD and osteoarthritis.

The Web database, developed by Santa Fe, N.M.-based Qforma, will hold information about local physicians who are considered “Most Influential Doctors” for specific types of diseases, officials said.

"Breast cancer, depression, COPD and osteoarthritis are four life-altering diseases that impact millions of patients and their families," said Kelly D. Myers, CEO of Qforma. "Patients diagnosed with these conditions are seeking the most informed health providers and effective treatment strategies to improve their outcomes, and the new MID rosters are expected to provide them with a first step in the right direction."

The rosters will include Qforma's rankings of the top three to five physicians in many U.S. metropolitan areas for these four diseases.

The MID database is expected to enable patients and other consumers to identify local medical experts whom other physicians seek out for insight and counsel on these conditions. Previous MID rosters, released earlier in 2009, provided top physician information on diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

October marks the 25th annual National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and is also National Depression Month. Breast cancer affects one in eight women in the United States, and depression affects one in five. Additionally, osteoarthritis has been conservatively estimated to affect nearly 27 million Americans, while COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the nation.

The MID database is built upon Qforma's analytic software, which recognizes patterns in human interactions and is designed to identify influential physicians in a given disease, state or condition by geographic location. Identifying indicators include referral networks, practice patterns, publication history and leadership positions in professional associations.