Second OrigiMed Summit for Cancer Discovery: Immunotherapy and Targeted Therapy Held in Shanghai, Promoting Precision Medicine of China to Go Global

SHANGHAI, May 29, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- With the rapid development of the global medical industry and the advent of precision cancer medicine in China, gene detection-guided clinic treatment has become a significant development trend. On May 26, 2018, the Second OrigiMed Summit for Cancer Discovery: Immunotherapy and Targeted Therapy was held in Shanghai. Themed on "Broader Vision, Deeper Insight", Chinese and foreign experts and scholars in this summit carried out a further discussion on such topics as tumor targeting and immunotherapy, aiming to benchmark China's precision treatment against international standard. 

For this summit, four experts in precision medicine from Scientific Advisory Board of OrigiMed Inc, including Professor Matthew Meyerson, a founder of targeted therapy from Harvard Medical School; Professor Gordon Freeman, a founder of immunotherapy from Harvard Medical School; Professor Carlos Arteaga, CT application specialist and director of University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas; and Professor Tony Mok, international lung cancer expert from Faculty of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, gathered in Shanghai to show the cutting-edge research results in precision treatment for attendees. In addition, honored guests such as Professor Wu Yilong, lifetime director of Guangdong General Hospital; Professor Chen Haiquan, director of Thoracic Surgery Department, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center; and Professor John Cai, director of CEIBS Center for Health Care Management and Policy, were invited to cast new light upon issues of public concern like the transformation of precision medicine to clinical practice and the development policies and economic relationships of targeted medicine and immunotherapy, providing a new way of thinking and a breakthrough point for cancer treatment in China.

Generally speaking, precision medicine is a medical model that proposes the customization of healthcare. In this model, diagnosis and therapy are often made appropriately based on the context of a patient's genetic content or other molecular or cellular analysis, with medical decisions, treatments, practices, or products being tailored to the needs of the patient. Basically, cancer is a genetic disease. Every cancer is caused by the mutation of specific genes, entailing precision testing before precision treatment. Only when the type of gene mutation is clearly defined can the correct selection of targeted therapies be made to truly benefit patients. In America, the coverage of over 300 FDA-approved tumor gene detection products by health insurance means great changes to be made in cancer treatment. In the future, gene detection will not only provide cancer patients with more personalized medical services but also reduce their financial pressure.

At the first experts' meeting on precision medicine strategy hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology in 2015, it was announced that investment totaling CNY 60 billion was expected in this sector by 2030. Precision medicine has become a nationwide initiative since then. Although still at its infancy in China, precision medicine is bound to benefit the large population of cancer patients with the substantial support of government. In such context, the OrigiMed Summit for Cancer Discovery: Immunotherapy and Targeted Therapy is of particular concern.

In this summit, based on accurate detection techniques and international leading biodata analysis, OrigiMed released multiple new findings for cancer patients in China that had never been reported before. These findings will be practically and effectively applied in clinical treatment. Meanwhile, OrigiMed also provided multiple international clinical research platforms. Since establishment, OrigiMed has built many international platforms such as the world's leading international scientific advisory team, the international platform for clinical exchange and discussion, and international cooperation platforms for precision treatment of hepatobiliary tumor and breast cancer, having greatly promoted the precision, individualization and internationalization of cancer treatment in China.

"Precision treatment is a cutting-edge front in tumor studies and precision detection is a prerequisite for precision treatment. Our goal is to identify the origin of cancer and provide a more individualized precise treatment for each patient," Wang Kai, CEO of OrigiMed said. "In the past, we're only able to test one gene in a single detection. But now, several hundred genes can be tested at the same time with higher precision using NGS. Based on the optimization algorithm and strong knowledge base developed by our company, patients can get accurate and broad information about various mutations of several hundred cancer genes through samples of the same size. Only in this way can the needs of clinically precise individualized treatment be met. In the future, we also hope to build more international cooperation platforms and work with domestic and foreign industry experts and peers to promote the development of precision medicine in China and fight against cancer together."

Professor Matthew Meyerson, expert in cancer genomics and director of both the Cancer Center, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University and the DFCI Cancer Center, expressed that he was honored and looking forward to joining Scientific Advisory Board of OrigiMed. He hoped OrigiMed would make further progress in NGS and precise treatment to provide more clinical assistance, with the comprehensive detection of hundreds of genes applied in clinical practice.

Professor Wu Yilong, one of the members in the presidium and lifetime director of Guangdong General Hospital, said that China's precise treatment would play an increasingly important role in the international community since China has entered into an era of rapid changes and reforms in medicine. With the upcoming commercialization of China's first checkpoint inhibitor in 2018, clinical trials should be conducted for immunotherapy and precision detection employed to select optimal biomarkers to provide effective help for more patients. Besides, Mr. Wu pointed out that powerful biodata analysis techniques and capabilities would play an important role in future precision treatment.

The summit was sponsored by OrigiMed Co.,Ltd, which was founded in May 2016. With the capital from IDG Ventures, Green Pine Capital Partners, Volcanics Venture, Wedo Capital, Star VC and other famous investment institutions at home and abroad, OrigiMed upholds the core principle of "Tracing Cancer Back to the Origins" is committed to the R&D of new diagnosis and treatment technologies to be applied in clinical practice for all cancer patients across China. By carrying out comprehensive detection of 450 cancer genes via NGS and its innovative technologies tailored to clinical needs, OrigiMed offers one-stop precision detection, featuring six major clinical functions. Besides, OrigiMed launched the first mobile application of precision treatment data in China, Doctor Marmot, which has provided more assistance for clinical treatment. At present, the clinical detection service network of OrigiMed has covered more than 200 core hospitals in nearly 40 key cities nationwide.

SOURCE OrigiMed