National Foundation for Cancer Research and KEW, Inc. announce a collaboration
National Foundation for Cancer Research and KEW, Inc. announce a collaboration to increase awareness of the value of genetic testing.
Big Data comes to Cancer Care Choices. #Research4aCure
BETHESDA, Maryland (June 8, 2016) – The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) and Kew, Inc, a private oncology services company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts , announced today they will jointly work to increase the awareness of the clinical benefits of genetic testing to cancer patients and oncologists. Precision medicine moves information faster to where the patient decisions are made, thereby potentially improving options, quality of care and potential outcomes as well.
The genetic testing technology, including Next-Gen Sequencing (NGS) on comprehensive and specific gene panels, is able to identify patient-specific drug targets and cancer-driving molecular pathways. Guided by the genetic testing results, oncologists can prescribe personalized and targeted cancer therapies to their patients.
With numerous new drugs that target specific cancer mutations in clinical trials, the ability to share information widely becomes an increasingly burdensome task. NFCR and KEW are teaming up to launch programs that aim to increase the awareness of the value of genetic testing, educate patients, family members and oncologists about the clinical benefits of testing and guide them through the seemingly complex clinical process in a much easier manner.
Raju Kucherlapati, MD, Paul C. Cabot Professor of Genetics and Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and co-founder of KEW, spoke of the goal of “helping doctors everywhere, treat cancer patients anywhere.” “We are dedicated to empowering oncologists to make the right therapy decision for patients by providing actionable, patient-specific information derived from our genetic testing”, said Dr. Kucherlapati.
“KEW’s genetic testing technology and capability in bioinformatics will help to integrate data accumulated from various research and clinical sources into treatment options and cancer care choices, which is highly beneficial to cancer patients and in keeping with NFCR’s long valued efforts in sharing information among scientists, physicians and patients,” said NFCR Chief Science Officer, Michael Wang, MD, PhD.
Public outreach and education is one of the core missions of NFCR’s programs. For more than 43 years, NFCR has been supporting cancer research laboratories and then sharing results with oncologists, patients, and general public worldwide. Many of the NFCR-funded scientists have contributed to developing the foundation of today’s personalized targeted therapies and precision medicine.
NFCR welcomes KEW’s support of the education and communication facet of its mission. Together both organizations can help raise awareness of new options in cancer treatment.
NFCR is a convener and one of the early funders of applying genetic testing technology, including Next-Gen Sequencing (NGS) to clinical applications to guide personalized treatment for patients. With today’s internet speed of access, NFCR is taking fast actions to promote collaboration and information-sharing. NFCR is dedicated to supporting “high risk/high reward” cancer research and public education relating to prevention, early diagnosis, better treatments and, ultimately, a cure for all types of cancer.
For more information: www.nfcr.org; 301-654-1250
KEW, Inc. provides comprehensive genomic testing services that enable oncologists to make evidence-driven personalized treatment decisions for cancer patients. Based out of Cambridge, MA, KEW was founded by pioneers of the precision medicine industry, including key contributors to the Human Genome and The Cancer Genome Atlas projects. The CANCERPLEX® suite of products offers flexible panel sizes, the largest of which sequences 400+ cancer genes in solid tumors that are the most relevant to oncology patient care. Specialized panels offer the option to test based on the site of a patient’s tumor or to limit results to FDA-approved therapies. CANCERPLEX not only makes personalized medicine more accessible, it delivers the promise of precision medicine for all.
For more information: www.kewinc.com; 617-229-5954
Contact:
KEW, Inc.
Mark D. Myslinski
mmyslinski@kewinc.com
www.kewinc.com
https://kewinc.com/cancerplex-overview/
617-229-5954
Contact:
NFCR
Keith Spiro
KSpiro@NFCR.org
www.nfcr.org
301-654-1250
