Left to Right: Jim Wicks (Founder and CEO, YouSeq), Stuart Dutton (Chief Financial Officer, Everything Genetic), James Price (Founder and CEO, Everything Genetic), Nadine Collins ( Dr Nadine Collins, Consultant Clinical Scientist, Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services).
We are pleased to have joined forces with Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services (BSPS) to provide a Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) service for cancer panels in the UK.
NGS is a technology that enables complex and reliable interrogation of DNA to assess samples for variations that may indicate a predisposition to a genetic disease. We have invested in the Illumina NGS MiSeq Platform, under an initial five-year agreement, which will enable the molecular diagnostics laboratory based at the Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust to analyse tiny amounts of DNA for the presence of variations.
BSPS will begin to deliver services using our two new cancer gene panels that are currently being developed: a 12-gene breast cancer panel and a 30-gene multi-cancer panel. Both panels will launch in the new year under the Everything Genetic brand. The new assays have been created by a UK-based team of molecular scientists, YouSeq, and link to cloud-based software systems, which enable extremely accurate analysis of the data and create an easily accessible report of the results for customers.
Partnering with BSPS to provide this service will ensure a high-quality service for our customers, with a faster turnaround time for results and a lower price per test than is currently available. The BSPS molecular diagnostics laboratory has recently been approved as a Local Genomic Laboratory to help in the delivery of NHS Genomic Medicine Service nationally.
This offering builds on an existing collaboration between Everything Genetic and BSPS, who joined forces in a similar way in 2019, to provide breast cancer patients in the UK with access to the Prosigna Breast Cancer Assay – a genomic test that can predict the risk of recurrence of breast cancer, therefore enabling patients and their physicians to tailor treatment based on and appropriate to the biology of the patient’s own tumour.
James Price, Chief Executive Officer at Everything Genetic, said: “We’re delighted to partner with Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services to provide Next Generation Sequencing services. Our investment in this public-private partnership and associated technology demonstrates our commitment to quality and to the prevention and treatment of cancer in the UK and further afield. This partnership also marks an evolution in the Everything Genetic business, providing our own genetic testing technology as part of our mission to make genetic testing more accessible to all.”
Dr Nadine Collins, Consultant Clinical Scientist at Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Service, said: “We’re excited to partner with Everything Genetic to deliver Next Generation Sequencing on this platform to clinicians and customers across the UK. This partnership will help us to continue to develop the services that we can offer to our users and ensure that the latest scientific advances in technology can be rolled out and made available for the benefit of all.”
