NEW YORK — The Precision Cancer Consortium (PCC), a group of biopharmaceutical firms collaborating to increase access to genomic testing in oncology, said on Tuesday that it has launched with Bayer, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, and Roche as its inaugural members.
The PCC said its focus is on increasing patient access to precision diagnostics based on next-generation sequencing and other genomic technologies in both routine care and clinical trials.
To do so, the group plans to remove barriers to access and increase educational awareness of the value of genomic testing for healthcare stakeholders including patients, providers, and healthcare systems. It also aims to improve efficiencies in genomic biomarker testing in clinical studies.
The PCC said it is open to additional members and will not endorse or promote specific diagnostic or therapeutic products or services.
"With cancer, the earlier patients are diagnosed and begin treatment, the better their outcomes tend to be," Espen Walker, integrated strategy leader at Roche Foundation Medicine, who is chair of the PCC, said in a statement. "Precision diagnostics, including comprehensive genomic testing, are an important part of developing treatment plans that can help patients. The PCC is focused on addressing these barriers across the cancer ecosystem with the aim of improving outcomes for patients."