NEW YORK – German laboratory Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff and California-based Genomic Testing Cooperative (GTC) announced on Tuesday that they will collaborate to deploy GTC's molecular tissue and liquid biopsy tests for solid tumors and hematologic neoplasms in Germany.
Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff will integrate GTC's next-generation sequencing-based oncology assays and will become a member of the GTC cooperative group, allowing the laboratory to gain access to proprietary capabilities and datasets. The lab will also gain the opportunity to participate in coordinated global research and development and associated clinical trial programs, GTC said in a statement. Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff will be performing wet laboratory work in Germany and will be generating revenue from the partnership, Jeff Owen, GTC's VP of marketing, said via email.
Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff will be GTC's first laboratory in the EU, Owen added. Lake Forest, California-based GTC is based on a co-op model where GTC shares its diagnostic testing with other hospitals and helps with analysis, reagents, standard operating procedures, training, technical support, and R&D. It has previously inked deals with Halo Diagnostics, C2i Genomics, Cota, Hackensack Meridian Health, and John Theurer Cancer Center.
"We are excited to partner with GTC and to bring cutting-edge advances in genomics and precision medicine into the German healthcare space," Hilmar Wisplinghoff, managing partner at Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff, said in a statement. "We believe that together we can be at the forefront of developing and deploying products and services that offer 'step change' patient outcomes in the treatment of cancers in Germany."
Cologne-based Labor Dr. Wisplinghoff is one of the largest independent private medical laboratories in western Europe and covers all areas of clinical pathology.
GTC received CE-IVD marking for four of its NGS-based cancer tests in 2022 and nabbed New York state approval and Medicare coverage for multiple assays in 2021.