Cancer Genetics (CGI) has announced a partnership with the Indian Cooperative Oncology Network (ICON) to promote the use of precision cancer medicine in India.

ICON is a professional organization focused on advancing clinical cancer research in India. Under the terms of the alliance, ICON will work with CGI on educational and collaborative oncology clinical research activities in India to drive use of genomic technologies in the clinic.

According to CGI, the partners will also study and analyze benefits and trends of genomically informed targeted therapies with the goal of generating new recommendations for the optimal use of molecular assays in cancer treatment.

As part of this effort, CGI plans to host a session and panel discussion at ICON's upcoming annual meeting in March to discuss new technologies in cancer care such as liquid biopsy and next-generation sequencing.

CGI President and CEO Panna Sharma stated that there is a severe shortage of properly trained physicians in India, with only 2,000 specialized oncologists to treat the vast number of patients. This discrepancy encourages partnerships with Western companies to improve patient care in India, thereby opening up a huge market with high unmet medical need.