NEW YORK – Mayo Clinic and Personalis said on Tuesday that they have begun a research collaboration that will offer clinical-grade comprehensive cancer genomic sequencing to patients who choose to participate.
Results from Personalis' whole-exome and transcriptome sequencing results will be made available to these participating patients and their healthcare providers to guide therapeutic decisions. At the same time, Mayo Clinic and Personalis will gain access to aggregated data that they plan to use to further develop the company's comprehensive diagnostic approach.
Konstantinos Lazaridis, medical director of Mayo Clinic's center for individualized medicine, said in a statement that he and his colleagues believe the use of aggregated and de-identified genomic sequencing data "will improve both patient care and patient access to care."
In an email, a Personalis spokesperson added that the deal establishes a framework for Personalis to sponsor future defined research studies at or with Mayo Clinic. In addition, it establishes Personalis as a preferred provider to Mayo Clinic for research and clinical sequencing and analysis services, particularly in the area of immuno-oncology.
William Morice, chair of Mayo Clinic's department of laboratory medicine and pathology, said in a statement that the agreement enables the clinic to ensure that more cancer patients get access to cutting-edge approaches.
"We're committed to making this test available to diverse patient populations who haven't yet had access to this type of testing," he said.
"As we advance the Human Cancer Genome Project to more diverse and understudied populations, it is particularly important to use comprehensive sequencing methods to uncover all possible mutations," added Cheryl Willman, director of Mayo Clinic Cancer Center.
She also mentioned that data from the collaboration could offer new insight into cancer causes, driving discovery in "precision prevention" to detect and treat cancers earlier.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.