I have posted a number of notes about contract research organizations (CROs), notably Covance and Charles River. My interest in these companies stems from my belief that their pursuit of new companies and technologies can be instructive and serve as a model for hospital-based clinical laboratories (see: Charles River Acquires Molecular Imaging Company). Continuing in this same vein, I read with interest that Quintiles Transnational has just acquired Targeted Molecular Diagnostics (see: Quintiles Acquires Targeted Molecular Diagnostics), Below is an excerpt from the press release with boldface emphasis mine:
Quintiles Transnational Corp. today announced that it has acquired Targeted Molecular Diagnostics (TMD)....The addition of TMD to Quintiles' Global Central Laboratories strengthens Quintiles' service offerings in oncology, an increasingly important growth area of drug development. It provides strong capabilities in tissue-based testing, a critical component of the modern oncology drug development process....TMD's biomarker technology will help Quintiles' customers better understand how their drugs work and in which populations they're most likely to perform best....TMD provides guidance through biomarker expression analysis and supports the development of numerous targeted therapies in oncology. The company works with customers in the design of effective clinical trials that reduce the time and cost of bringing new compounds to market. TMD currently supports clinical trials for pharmaceutical and biotech companies in over 40 countries and offers over 100 biomarker assays.
I have posted previous notes about the need to more closely align anatomic and surgical pathology with clinical pathology (see: Integration of Anatomic and Clinical Pathology; Reinventing Pathology: The Hematopathologist as a Model for the Pathologist of the Future; In-Vitro Biomarkers vs. In-Situ Biomarkers). Molecular diagnostics as applied to both bench research and clinical practice is being revolutionized by the measurement of new serum biomarkers, particularly for the diagnosis of cancer. Similarly, tissue analysis for drug research and surgical pathology is being greatly enhanced by the qualitative and quantitative assessment of these same biomarkers in tissue.
I have pointed out in a recent note how the boundaries between pre-clinical and clinical laboratory investigation are beginning to blur based on the increasing overlap between LIMSs and the LISs (see: LIS vs. LIMS: It's Time to Blend the Two Types of Lab Information Systems). I am wondering if some of the future plans of the Quintiles' Global Central Laboratories and other CRO-based research laboratories may lead them to compete in the future with the esoteric clinical reference labs in the areas of oncology molecular diagnostics and tissue imaging.
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