Cerner Corp and Claritas Genomics announce that they will collaborate to advance personalized medicine by developing a rapid, scalable laboratory solution for molecular diagnostics. The solution will be tailored to NGS workflows that will generate more data than traditional molecular diagnostic tests.
According to the announcement, the partnership with Cerner will enable the Cambridge-based Claritas to tap into an existing, scalable computing infrastructure that integrates ordering of genomic sequencing tests, laboratory processing, results interpretation, return of results to the clinician and incorporation of the result in the patient’s electronic medical record (EMR) (Marketwatch, 12/6).
Claritas will implement Cerner’s Millennium Helix solution as part of the initial phase of the project, and will join Cerner’s Reference Lab Network to allow seamless ordering and results return for other Reference Lab Network partners.
Cerner Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cerner, will also invest in the company as part of the partnership, becoming a minority shareholder and adds Clay Patterson, managing director of Cerner Capital to Claritas’s board of directors.
The clinical diagnostics laboratory provider of genetic testing was formed as a spin out of Boston Children’s Hospital, with an investment from Life Technologies in February, and was recently joined by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and now Cerner, as key investors and network partners.
“Cerner has long focused on the power of genomics and its impact to clinical processes, and this relationship will help advance the field and define a meaningful narrative in personalized medicine between the realms of research, diagnostics and clinical practice,” said Dick Flanigan, senior vice president with Cerner. Claritas’ focus on pediatrics is noteworthy, as that’s when integrating genomics into clinical practice could be particularly impactful.”
