Meet the Care Team: Dr. Dylan O’Shea, Primary Care Provider at Color

At Color, primary care physicians (PCPs) are reimagining what it means to provide accessible, coordinated, and patient-centric Cancer Care. Whether it’s connecting patients to the right screenings, helping them understand their cancer risk, managing abnormal results, or guiding them through what comes next, these physicians are on the frontlines of proactive Cancer Care. 

Too often, cancer screenings take a backseat—nearly half of primary care doctors say their patients don’t treat them as a priority. That’s where Color steps in. Our clinicians work alongside PCPs to help screenings actually happen. We coordinate next steps, share records, and guide patients through what can otherwise feel like a maze of decisions and logistics.

For the 30-40% of U.S. adults without a primary care physician , we fill a critical gap—connecting people to in-network care, making the system easier to navigate, and helping them take charge of their health, one step at a time.

One of those providers is Dylan O’Shea, MD, whose non-traditional path–from software development to acute inpatient oncology–offers a unique perspective into how Cancer Care can be delivered better.

We sat down with Dylan to learn more about his journey, his approach to care, and what drives his work at Color’s Virtual Cancer Clinic. 

Your background includes work as an inpatient PCP and technology entrepreneurship. Can you tell us a bit more about that and how your experience has influenced your approach to patient care at Color?

My path to medicine wasn’t exactly a straight line. Before med school, I worked at an ed-tech startup in New York and taught full-stack web development at General Assembly’s coding bootcamp. It was exciting, but I always knew I’d eventually return to healthcare.

I trained in internal medicine at the University of Washington and then worked on its inpatient oncology service, caring for people whose cancer either required close monitoring or had advanced enough to cause complications. That experience, watching patients move through a fragmented system, made it clear how outdated our tools were compared to the innovation I saw in the tech world. At Color, I finally found a place that merges both worlds: thoughtful, human-centered care powered by modern technology.

Many patients don’t prioritize cancer screenings amidst other health concerns. How do you engage with them to emphasize the importance of early detection and prevention?

One of the biggest advantages of Color’s Virtual Cancer Clinic is patient-provider time. In traditional primary care, visits are often 15 minutes long – not because PCPs want it that way, but because the system is built that way. At Color, we get longer visits with a more focused agenda. That allows us to dive into cancer education and help patients understand why we’re recommending a screening or other next steps—not just that we are.

We also have incredible Care Advocates who help patients actually follow through on care recommendations. It’s easy enough to say, “Go get a colonoscopy” or “Go get a mammogram,” and call it a day. But actually helping someone find an in-network specialist or imaging center, figure out the cost, and book the appointment? That last-mile support is where we shine.

Navigating abnormal screening results can be overwhelming for patients. How do you support them in understanding next steps and ensuring they receive timely, appropriate care?

It’s important to remember that not everyone reacts the same way to concerning results. Some people go straight into “what’s next?” mode. Others hear the word abnormal and freeze. My job is to slow things down and make sure they walk away with a clear plan, and peace of mind.

I explain what the results mean (and don’t mean), talk through the range of possibilities, and emphasize that this isn’t a diagnosis, it’s just a signal for more information. Then I repeat the plan. And then I repeat it again, if needed.

We want people to leave these conversations feeling not just informed, but supported, and like someone’s still walking with them, not just dropping off scary news and disappearing.

How does Color’s clinical team approach the developing clinical protocols for cancer screening and risk reduction in order to make sure they reflect the most recent guidelines?

We take this work seriously. Our protocols are grounded in evidence-based guidelines from the American Cancer Society (ACS), the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), and specialty-specific organizations like American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) or the American College of Radiology (ACR). We constantly monitor updates and debate when new evidence warrants a change—even before guidelines catch up.

We also have a panel of subject matter experts, oncologists, and genetic counselors who guide these conversations. It’s collaborative and rigorous, and led by people who live and breathe this data every day.

Big shoutout to Deanna Brockman, who keeps all of this running. Someone called her our “protocol guru” recently, and honestly, it’s well-earned.

How do you hope patients feel after interacting with a Color Clinician? And how do you do your best to make that happen?

I hope they feel confident. That they’re doing everything they can for their health, and that someone’s in their corner.

I also want them to feel informed, like they understand the why behind our care, not just the what. And finally, I want them to feel supported. We’re a collaborative team who shares notes and talks constantly. I don’t want them to feel like they are starting from scratch. That continuity matters.

What’s a hobby or activity you enjoy that helps you unwind after a long day?

Lately, it’s woodworking. I’m still learning, but I’m spending a lot of time at Lowe’s, watching videos, and figuring out why my tools aren’t good enough. I’m mostly working on practical furniture—nothing too fancy yet.

And when I’m not covered in sawdust, I love watching movies with my wife and our cat, Scout. He’s not the smartest, but he’s extremely cute, which is all you can ask for at the end of the day.