Congenica Announces Market Access Partnership with Digital China Health to Enable Genomic Medicine in the Chinese Market

Business Wire

Partnership will accelerate Congenica’s commercial expansion in the Chinese market
Digital China Health is a key player in China’s national big-data strategy, with a strategic mission to advance health information technology
Locally-adapted version of the Sapientia™ platform will enable genomic medicine in the Chinese market

CAMBRIDGE, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Congenica, the global diagnostic decision support platform provider, today announced it has entered into an agreement with a new strategic partner Digital China Health Technologies Cooperation Limited (DCHealth), further extending Congenica’s commitment to the Chinese market.

The new partnership will see Congenica develop a version of its Sapientia™ platform designed to enable clinicians and patients in China to benefit from the clinical genomics and personalised medicine revolution. DCHealth will use its significant commercial depth and experience in the Chinese hospital market to accelerate the commercialization of this locally-adapted version of Sapientia™.

A leading player in the fast-emerging genomics medicines space, Congenica’s Sapientia platform and expert support services allows clinicians to interrogate the human genome to identify disease-causing variants. Congenica aims to revolutionise personalised patient care through accurate diagnoses, curation of evolving knowledge bases, and support in clinical trials and drug development. With the ability to interrogate all disease-causing variants, it has particular capability to support identification of those for Rare Diseases.

This important partnership with DCHealth increases the Company’s alliances and relationships in China, a market that offers considerable commercial potential in genomic medicine. DCHealth brings its scientific and commercial expertise to accelerate Congenica’s expansion in the China market. DCHealth is well-known as a leading company in medical big data and precision medicine, which has established a nation-wide cancer data network connecting 30 specialized cancer hospitals and 174 municipal cancer hospitals across China. It participated in various national projects including building the National Rare Disease Registry System of China. DCHealth has also years of experience working with hospitals in China to build IT systems that enhance patient care.

Dr David Atkins, CEO of Congenica, said: “China is an important market for Congenica and this new relationship with DCHealth gives us greater insight into what the local market requires to accelerate the broader use of genomic medicine. This comprehensive commercial partnership will give us extensive market insight and access.

“We also recognise the need to automate Sapientia to support wider usage and to help reduce costs to healthcare providers, helping more clinicians provide accurate, rapid and cost-effective diagnoses to patients and their families.”

Mr David Shi, CEO of DCHealth, commented: “As the provision of routine clinical genomics services continues to increase in China and other global markets, the analysis and interpretation of genomic data will be one of the most challenging aspects of transforming these data into meaningful, clinically-actionable results. Our business partnership reflects Congenica’s proven abilities and track record, and underlines our confidence that its clinical genomic diagnostics platform and services will support clinicians with definitive diagnoses and facilitates the delivery of consistently high quality of care.”

Dr Andy Richards, Chairman of Congenica, said: “Congenica is at the exciting scale up stage of its commercial development. As a top-tier Cambridge-based life sciences company at the forefront of the fast-moving genomics market, Congenica has demonstrated how, with the right investment and leadership, the UK can build world-leading technology companies originating from world-leading UK science. Having made tremendous progress over the past 18 months, and with this additional commercial partnership in China, it is poised to become the leading clinical genomics services provider, benefiting patients worldwide .”

Combining its heritage from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute with real-world commercial and clinical experience through work with Genomics England’s 100K Genomes Project, in addition to NHS Genomic Medicine Centres and NHS Trusts across the UK, Sapientia helps clinicians quickly identify the genetic variants that cause disease to support clinical decision-making. It has also played a role in a number of other significant national-scale genomics projects including China’s 100K Wellness Project.

The partnership was signed during Congenica’s second trade mission to China this year^#.

- Ends -

^#Signing ceremony and World Economic Forum event

Congenica is in China as part of the UK Government’s trade delegation to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions led by Rt Hon Matt Hancock, MP UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. Taking place 18-20 September in Tianjin, People’s Republic of China, the Forum focuses on the impact of science and technology on shaping economies, societies and geopolitical structures, with this year’s event marking the first meeting of the Forum’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Councils, including one on Precision Medicine.

About Congenica

Congenica is the provider of the diagnostic decision support platform, Sapientia, and associated clinical services, which enable clinicians to interrogate the human genome to identify disease-causing variants.

80% of rare diseases are thought to have a genetic component, and patients wait an average of 4.7 years, and typically see 7.4 different clinical specialists, before getting a diagnosis. Sapientia enables clinicians to progress through workflows more quickly, optimizing throughput of patients, number of patients diagnosed and reducing costs.

Headquartered in Cambridge, UK, and with a footprint in the US and China, Congenica is born out of pioneering research from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the NHS. Congenica is a partner for the pivotal Genomics England 100,000 Genomes Project.

For more information please visit us at www.congenica.com and follow us on Twitter at @Congenica and on LinkedIn.

About DCHealth

Digital China Health Technologies Co.,Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “DCHealth”) has been dedicated to the development and innovation in healthcare Big Data and Precision Medicine to promote healthcare information technology both in China and worldwide. DCHealth receives an expectation to be a unicorn in the industry of healthcare IT and Big Data.

DCHealth has a deep layout in the four areas of Healthcare Big Data, Medical Cloud Services, Health IT Solutions, and Precision Medicine. DCHealth provides next generation healthcare IT platforms including Precision Medicine Platform, Healthcare Big Data Platform, Healthcare Big Data Center, Healthcare Big Data Operation System, Health Management Platform, SHINEFLY Imaging Platform, Radiation Oncology Cloud Services, Cardiovascular Big Data Services, Population IT Platform, Hospital IT Integration Platform, Data Warehouse Cloud Platform.

Visit www.dcholdings.com.hk for more information.