Apollo Hospitals announced the introduction of several genomic tests as part of its personalised medicine initiative. The introduction of these tests, over the next few months, shall be spearheaded by the Apollo Hospitals subsidiary, Sapien Biosciences.
Previously Apollo, through Sapien, had launched a personalised test that combines assessment of a patients’ genotype and their platelet function to allow the physician to personalise anti-platelet therapy.
Sapien has been working with multiple genetic testing providers in India over the last few months to develop and customise these tests for introduction at Apollo. The first of these tests, to be launched shortly, shall be a clinical genomics panel for oncology that is designed to identify the mutations that drive cancer initiation and progression. Insights obtained from this test will reportedly enable prediction of patients’ response to their medication allowing the physician to tailor treatment to the patients’ genomic profile.
Along with the cancer genomic panels, Apollo will also be launching other panels that will enable differential diagnosis of certain heritable eye and cardiovascular diseases. Such panels will be especially helpful in identifying specific gene mutations in affected individuals. This information can in turn be used to screen unaffected members of their family for early detection and management.
They also plan to introduce genetic testing within the preventive healthcare context under careful physician supervision and with appropriate genetic counseling support. Tests that identify an individual’s risk for diseases of high relevance in the Indian population (such as cardiovascular, diabetes and obesity) could make a significant clinical impact.
Further genetic tests planned for roll-out include single gene panels for specific cancers (such as BRCA1/2, etc.), other disease-specific genetic testing panels (such as diabetes, autism etc.), pharmacogenetic panels (for assessment of response to specific drugs) and peri-natal diagnosis of genetic disorders.
Dr Prathap C Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals, said, “At Apollo, we believe, that such genetic tests, that are increasingly being adopted world-wide, will have a major impact on the delivery of quality clinical care and we are planning to integrate them into our clinical practice, in a manner consistent with global best practices. I am excited about the comprehensive strategy put together by Sapien to introduce genomic testing at Apollo and I look forward to the successful launch of these tests.”
Sangita Reddy, Executive Director, Apollo Hospitals, said, “Apollo has been a trend-setter in healthcare, pioneering the concept of preventive health checks in 1983 and the concept of personalised health checks (PHCs) in 2013. Going forward, we are excited that these PHCs will include an optional genetic test to assess an individual’s risk factors for diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disorders. Such tests will allow our clinicians to personalise their patients’ health-check follow-up and assess risk factors that can potentially impact their long-term health outcomes.”
Sreevatsa Natarajan, Co-founder and CEO, Sapien Biosciences said, “The comprehensive road-map developed by Sapien anticipates the launch of various genetic tests over the course of the next few months across the Apollo network, in partnership with key collaborators. At Sapien, we have a highly qualified, internationally experienced team that will play a major role in the systematic roll-out and integration of genomic testing and other cutting-edge diagnostic tests at Apollo. Eventually, Sapien and Apollo’s vision shall be crystallised as centres for personalised medicine across the Apollo network.”
Dr Jugnu Jain, Co-founder and CSO, Sapien Biosciences said “Our experience with genetics allows us to critically evaluate literature and customise tests for Indian patients for optimal clinical benefit, consistent with global best practices and patient privacy norms. Over time, we expect to have a large database of genotype-phenotype correlation for Indian patients that will allow identification and quantification of genetic risk factors, akin to a ‘Framingham Score’, for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and cancer.”
Seemant Jauhari, CEO, Research & Innovations, Apollo Hospitals said, “Pushing new frontiers through healthcare innovation is a key driver at Apollo. Apollo has deliberated introducing genetic testing in a responsible and effective manner. We intend to integrate these tests into the clinical practice at our hospitals with active participation from our physicians in prescribing and interpreting test results within the context of the patients’ overall clinical profile. Further, we are considering creating a comprehensive genetic counseling course as part of Apollo’s initiatives in medical education.”
EH News Bureau
