NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – AstraZeneca Singapore and Lucence Diagnostics said today that they have entered a collaboration to provide improved access to BRCA testing for women in Singapore with ovarian cancer.
Under the agreement, AstraZeneca is subsidizing testing for Singaporean women diagnosed with the disease, and Lucence will provide the testing through its clinical lab.
Ordering physicians must be medical specialists who have been provided appropriate genetic counseling, and they must consent to an AstraZeneca service agreement, representatives from the company said. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.
AstraZeneca Singapore's Vinod Shetty said in a statement that guidelines in Singapore recommend that patients with epithelial ovarian cancer be referred for genetic testing, including BRCA analysis, but less than half of women with these cancers actually receive such testing.
"With this collaboration with Lucence, we aim to provide more patients with their BRCA status – important information that will empower patients and physicians," Shetty said.