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Companion diagnostics and more
Siemens and LabCorp to co-develop clinical tests
Possibilities to co-develop new clinical diagnostic tests for companion diagnostics, metabolic syndrome, oncology and diabetes, are being explored by Siemens Healthcare and Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (LabCorp).
Companion diagnostics are tests designed to identify the suitability between patients and a particular drug therapy. The tests can be used in personalised medicine to improve the safety and efficacy of therapeutic drugs and in some cases, may help determine optimal dosing for individual patients.
Metabolic syndrome is becoming more common and is characterised by a person having multiple risk factors that may include high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and diabetes, among others. It is estimated that more than 50 million people are affected by this syndrome in the USA alone.
LabCorp is a reference laboratory with over 220,000 clients in the US. The new strategic cooperation, said Dave Hickey, Senior Vice President Strategic Planning and Business Development, Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, ‘establishes a framework that gives both companies the opportunity to offer new diagnostic tests to laboratories, physicians and their patients more quickly and effectively than either could do alone.’
Myla P Lai-Goldman MD, executive vice president, chief scientific officer and medical director for LabCorp, added that the firm is ‘… excited about this strategic collaboration and its impact on our companion diagnostics efforts. Alliances, such as this between developers and providers of new tests, are critical in translating emerging biomarkers from research into clinical practice.’
This article was published on 07/01/2008