Quintiles has set up a new company 'Oxford Cancer Biomarkers’ to provide oncology consulting services and new cancer biomarkers which is the key to selection of the right drug for the right patient.

Oxford Cancer Biomarkers will develop biomarkers using CancerNav, a proprietary DNA- and protein-based assay technology platform invented by Dr. Nick La Thangue, Chair of Cancer Biology at Oxford University. David Kerr, CBE, DSc, MD, FMedSci., Professor of Cancer Medicine at the University of Oxford and an expert in cancer clinical research and policy development, will serve as the new company’s chief medical officer.

Quintiles is the largest shareholder in Oxford Cancer Biomarkers; other major shareholders are the University of Oxford, and Professors La Thangue and Kerr.

Oxford Cancer Biomarkers will now offer discovery into predictive biomarker diagnostic products that allow medicines to be personalized for the benefit of the cancer patient. Its consultancy arm offers expertise in the development, placement, conduct and analysis of early phase oncology clinical trials. It is a spin-out of the University of Oxford and has strong links with the Oxford Institute of Cancer Medicine.

The company has offices in Oxford and Reading, UK, will have a strategic association with Quintiles and Quintiles Global Laboratories, which have the capabilities and expertise to operationalise the consulting and biomarker R&D innovations from Oxford Cancer Biomarkers for the benefit of biopharma companies globally.

“Biomarkers hold great promise to improve trial success rates by identifying patient sub-groups most likely to respond to treatment, increasing the probability of trial success and improving patient safety,” said Ben Cons, vice president, Quintiles Corporate Development.

“Quintiles’ investment in Oxford Cancer Biomarkers is further evidence of our commitment to provide biopharma and healthcare service providers with the tools, expertise and services needed to increase R&D productivity and speed, and better the lives of patients,” he added.

Professor Kerr, who recently finished his term as president of the European Society of Medical Oncology, stated that the aim as to identify those cancer patients who are likely to benefit most from treatment. Our association with Quintiles would widens our access to some of the best cancer drug development teams.

According to Professor La Thangue, our proprietary biomarker platform, CancerNav, which can rapidly generate predictive biomarkers for cancer drugs.