Through the partnership CE Diagnostics will offer Paradigm’s most advanced cancer profiling services in India that will help improve treatment mechanisms
New Delhi, May 18, 2016: Indian medical startup CORE Diagnostics has entered into a new partnership with leading US-based molecular diagnostics company Paradigm to bring to India the latter’s advanced cancer profiling service, PCDx, which helps in detailed personalizing of each cancer patient’s course of treatment.
Paradigm, the molecular information & Next Generation Sequencing (NSG) corporation specializing in providing tumor analysis for patients with cancer to help find the optimal treatments, has signed a distribution agreement with CORE Diagnostics to facilitate patient access to PCDx, in India. Through this association, the two companies aim to provide a growing community of oncologists the most relevant and actionable cancer care available.
With molecular testing driving the new wave of personalized cancer treatment protocols, this agreement with enable CORE Diagnostics add a valuable service to its comprehensive menu of advanced diagnostic tests in India.
(Paradigm Cancer Diagnostic) PCDx is a comprehensive clinical-grade NGS-based test that is designed to provide physicians and patients with a more targeted, personalized approach to cancer treatment by identifying the underlying genomic and proteomic alterations of a tumors DNA, RNA & Protein. The test interrogates the most relevant genomic targets at over 5,000x average depth of coverage with 72 therapeutic associations. Results are typically delivered in 4-5 business days.The test uses molecular data to help oncologists provide the most effective treatment plan for each patient and devise more accurate therapeutic options for patient care.
“With a focus on esoteric testing, an extensive experience in the region, and a dedicated diagnostics sales team of over 40, CORE is an ideal partner to Paradigm as it seeks to expand the reach of its PCDx tumor profiling service,” said Zoya Brar, Founder & Managing Director of CORE Diagnostics. “Paradigm’s offering would be a great addition to our portfolio. We are looking forward to this relationship with Paradigm and believe it will have a significant impact on improving the treatment of cancer patients in India.”
David Mallery, President, Paradigm, said: “Expanding our testing services outside the US market is a key strategic initiative for Paradigm. The relationship with CORE Diagnostics provides us with considerable resources to rapidly expand testing and realize this goal while allowing better patient and physician access to PCDx abroad.”
CORE Diagnostics, offers a comprehensive menu of specialized, advanced diagnostic testing in India in the areas of cardiology, oncology, reproductive disorders, endocrinology and infectious diseases. It is also working with physicians from prominent medical centers in the U.S. to collaborate with their Indian colleagues. The company deploys next generation sequencing and other technologies in clinical applications and uses digital pathology for enabling concurrent global review of test results. The company also provides patients with peace of mind by delivering second opinions on all cases by at least two specialists from a global panel of pathologists.
About CORE DIAGNOSTICS
CORE Diagnostics is a clinical laboratory focused on next generation diagnostics for disease stratification and therapy selection. The company focuses on bringing the most advanced testing techniques and expertise to India and is the destination for all of India’s high-end diagnostic needs.
CORE Diagnostics is truly one of a kind, because of: A rich menu of high-end tests; second opinion on every test from a global panel of pathologists; and very short turnaround time. The company’s initial test offerings have been in the areas of cardiology, oncology, reproductive disorders, endocrinology, and infectious diseases. For more information, please visit www.corediagnostics.in.
About PARADIGM
Paradigm is a molecular information corporation established to bring cutting-edge diagnostics to cancer patients and industry by providing information about the genomic makeup of the patient’s cancer and potential therapies based on the specific characterization of the patient’s tumor that can impact the patient’s course of treatment. Paradigm’s Next-Generation Sequencing based diagnostic test PCDx provides oncologists and patients with more precise information about the specific cancer pathways in the patient and associations between the pathways and the specific drugs available that can affect the cancer to allow for more effective decision-making. The test is driven by supporting data and literature and provides more choices for patient care than currently available on the market.
Zoya Brar, MD, Founder, Core Diagnostics
“A-grade leaders hire A-grade people. B-grade leaders hire C-grade people,” said ZoyaBrar, a year ago while speaking at a World Women’s Day event. Judging by the formidable team she has built at her first startup, CORE Diagnostics, that she founded when she was 24, she certainly qualifies as an A-grade leader.
Zoya got hired by Google fresh out of college. She, however, quit in two years in March 2013 to found Core Diagnostics – a clinical laboratory focused on next generation diagnostics for disease stratification and therapy selection.
Within a few months of launching, the first thing Core Diagnostics has done is merging with Palo Alto, US-based diagnostics chain OncoMDx. CORE raised INR 25 Crore in initial funding from the Silicon Valley based Artiman Ventures, and in a little over 3 years, has established CORE to be synonymous with innovation in Clinical Diagnostics. Meanwhile, the business has grown nearly 10% every month and has attracted an additional INR 25 Crore in funding. She was focused on bringing the most advanced testing techniques and expertise to India. She made Core Diagnostics a destination for all your high-end diagnostic needs.
Having been brought up in Chandigarh, Ludhiana and Delhi in her early years and her teens by a single mother, herself a successful healthcare executive, Zoya, in her own words “…. learned about leadership through osmosis,” and honed her leadership skills in various roles while writing for the Youth Parliament, organizing street plays, working for Parivartan - an NGO aimed at helping people with disabilities, working directly for the Chairman at the WLC group, as well at the Debating Society and several such initiatives while in school.
Zoya got a bachelor’s degree in Sociology at Lady Sriram College. She then worked at Google for 2 years before succumbing to the entrepreneur-ship bug.
Zoya is an avid reader – or prose and poetry. She writes a an occasional blog, and is writing her first book – a work of fiction.
Core Diagnostics: Unique Startup brand
CORE Diagnostics is a Clinical laboratory focused on Next Generation Diagnostics for disease stratification and therapy selection. It is focused on bringing the most advanced testing techniques and expertise to India, and the goal is to be the destination for all high-end diagnostic testing.
They view themselves as not only building a company but reshaping an industry. Reshaping an industry is never a sprint; it is a marathon. And in the re-sculpted healthcare industry they envision, diagnostics will be center-stage.
While diagnostics makes up for only 3% of the Healthcare expense, it impacts 70% of the cost downstream, and 100% of the outcome. Because of this “leverage”,
Diagnostic Medicine is receiving increasing attention on healthcare agenda – across the globe. India is no exception. That’s what makes the diagnostics segment both - important for the patient, and interesting for the entrepreneur. Hence, setting up a high end testing facility not only bridges this important lacuna, it also places the apt responsibility and accountability on diagnostics as a segment. Once we achieve this, the improvement of clinical outcome, and reduction of the downstream cost is simply a corollary. It is bound to happen.
What makes Core Diagnostics really different is that they offer a second opinion on every test from a global panel of experts. We heavily leverage communication technology and digital imaging to make this happen. As a corollary, we also do this in the shortest turnaround time of anyone in the industry.
They stand out in many ways. First, the global panel of experts is world class and includes some of the top names in Academic Medicine. Second, the work culture… They truly look and feel like a Silicon Valley startup, except that they are located in Gurgaon. Having a Silicon Valley investor, and the acquisition of a Palo Alto based lab definitely helped on this count.
They are highly innovative – in everything they do and they are perceived as such. They have brought in innovation in various dimensions. For instance,they have the most extensive menu of high-end molecular and genomic diagnostics in Cardiology, Oncology, and Reproductive Medicine. They have brought cutting-edge genetic and genomic analysis to the mix of technology platforms.
See, I used the term “informatics” instead of information technology. IT is table stakes. Without a good IT system, you should not be in the business. It is informatics capability – a seamless amalgamation of a few Ph.D.’s in mathematics with probabilistic data analysis algorithms – that matters. This is serious stuff.
Looking at the scope of innovation in one more way - we see scientific breakthroughs in three general areas – genomics, informatics, and massive reductions in the cost of testing. For a market like India, all three are critical. And our R&D groups in the US and India are extremely active in all three.
We believe with conviction that we cannot go it alone. These are complex trans-disciplinary subjects that require extensive collaboration with academia and with big pharma. I want to point out my use of the term trans-disciplinary, as opposed to multi-disciplinary. The former is much harder to implement, and in the beginning, it feels really inefficient. But we believe that in the long run, we can have sustained innovation.
Our collaborations are not only in India, but also overseas. For instance, in 2012, we acquired an esoteric CLIA lab, OncoMDx, in Palo Alto (now called CORE Diagnostics, USA). This lab is our global Center of Excellence for R&D. Further, we have strategic alliances with developers of unique high-end diagnostic tests, for example CardioDx, Illumina/Verinata, etc. Finally, we have tie ups with a very large panel of pathologists in all clinical specialties – based in key Academic Medical Centers.
In just over a year, we have gone from a “Tale of Two Cities” – present in Delhi and Bombay – to all of India.We now collect samples from all parts of the country – from small towns and large. I’d say 80% of our volume comes from 20+ cities. We are quickly expanding to other countries.The growth potential is tremendous. The Diagnostics market will double in India in the next 5 years. In the same period, high end diagnostics is likely to grow tenfold.