Original from: BD

BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (NYSE: BDX), a leading global medical technology company, and Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), a leader in diagnostic information services, today announced a global collaboration agreement to develop, manufacture and commercialize flow cytometry-based companion diagnostics (CDx) intended to help select the best treatment for patients with cancer and other diseases.

Together, BD and Quest will aim to provide the pharmaceutical industry with an end-to-end solution for CDx development. The joint offerings will range from exploratory panel development to the manufacturing and distribution of FDA-approved diagnostic kits.

"BD has been at the forefront of flow cytometry innovation for a half-century, consistently leading advancements in this critical field," said Steve Conly, worldwide president of Biosciences at BD. "Our collaboration with Quest underscores a shared commitment to advance personalized medicine by leveraging this technology in the development of companion diagnostics to be used alongside therapeutic options for patients."

Using companion diagnostics to help select a first-line therapy for cancer patients can be critical to ensuring the best outcomes and cost savings. Today's companion diagnostic tests commonly involve technologies such as immunohistochemistry (IHC), fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), next-generation sequencing (NGS) and imaging. Flow cytometry, an established laboratory technology now being applied in the development of companion diagnostics, can rapidly analyze and sort individual cells to enable health care providers to understand an individual's immune response and could provide insight as to how best to manage the patient to improve clinical outcomes.

"This strategic collaboration with BD will combine our expertise in developing and validating biomarkers and assays with BD's leadership in flow cytometry to offer a fully integrated solution on a larger scale," said William Finger, vice president and general manager, Pharma Services for Quest Diagnostics. "Together, we can bring novel companion diagnostics to market that will enable more precise health care, to potentially improve patient outcomes and reduce health care costs."

Through its BioPharma services business, Quest Diagnostics offers end-to-end solutions for drug development, including clinical trial lab testing, companion diagnostic development, commercialization, and post-launch surveillance. 

Source: BD, Quest Diagnostics Join Forces to Develop Companion Diagnostics for Cancer, Other Diseases