Cancer precision treatment solution provider ACT Genomics Holdings has opened a new next generation sequencing (NGS) laboratory in Hong Kong.

Honh Kpong

Image: The new NGS laboratory is equipped with dual sequencing platforms. Photo: courtesy of Business Wire.

ACT Genomics offers optimal cancer treatment planning, cancer relapse and drug resistance monitoring, cancer risk assessment and immunotherapy evaluation to medical professionals.

Situated at the Hong Kong Science Park, the new 7,000ft² NGS laboratory, which is the company’s third such laboratory in Asia, is provided with workforce of around 40 sales, medical science and research and laboratory work.

ACT has developed the new laboratory to serve clinical, pharmaceutical and research communities in the city and Asia, as well as expand into the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in the future.

The new NGS laboratory features dual sequencing platforms, including Ion GeneStudio S5 system and NextSeq 550 system.

ACT Genomics CEO Dr Hua Chien CHEN said: “With over 31,000 new cancer cases in Hong Kong every year, it is crucial for cancer treatment solutions to stay on the cutting edge, and that is the mission of ACT Genomics.

“Our NGS platform provides physicians with essential reference for prescribing the most appropriate and effective treatment to a patient; many of Hong Kong’s private sector oncologists are ordering our services for their patients.”

ACT Genomics, which was established in Taiwan in 2014, offers personalised genomic information based-treatment plans to cancer patients via its advanced NGS platform, medical report and integrated services.

The firm’s platform holds capacity to identify multiple genomic alterations using a single tissue sample within a single test run.

When used along with advanced bioinformatics analysis tools, curated proprietary medical informatic databases and data visualization technologies, the platform is said to facilitate precision medicine treatment with matching identified mutations with approved therapies and targeted therapies in clinical trials.

The group also manages laboratories in Taiwan and Japan, in addition to the new laboratory in Hong Kong.

With over 7,800 samples sequenced, the group has developed a comprehensive cancer genomic database in Asia that covers 20 different types of cancer.

ACT is also planning to collaborate with various research institutes to support the development of Hong Kong into a world-class research centre for healthcare and biotech in Asia.