Strand, Narayana Hrudalaya to collaborate in translational cancer research

Bangalore, Aug.20 (ANI-Business Wire India): Strand Life Sciences, a technology pioneer in the practice of scientific intelligence in health sciences, today announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mazumdar Shaw Comprehensive Cancer Centre (MSCC) of the Narayana Hrudalaya (NH), for collaboration in translational cancer research.

The partnership is aimed at performing joint research and training in the field of translational cancer genomics and proteomics initially, leading to early detection, cure, and prolonging lives of cancer patients and providing affordable solutions. This collaboration would also lead to establishing of one of the largest translational cancer centers in the country.

MSCC, conceived as a 1400-bed, multi-specialty hospital within Narayana Hrudalaya Health City is one of the largest cancer hospitals in the world. Both the institutes have started a pilot program on comprehensive study of head and neck cancer, the leading cancer of India.

The partnership will enable groundbreaking discoveries and affordable solutions for head and neck cancer patients. An exciting outcome of the partnership is to create opportunities for young Indian scientists and clinicians to work with global leaders and have access to cutting edge scientific tools.

Strand also is a part of the public-private partnership initiative to build the state-of-the-art functional genomics and next-generation sequencing centre in Bangalore along with Department of IT, BT and ST, Govt. of Karnataka and Department of IT, Govt. of India. The centre, named Ganit Labs, would be at the forefront of solving scientific issues and contribute in the genomics research and training.

Dr. Paul C. Salins, Professor, Vice President and Medical Director of the MSCC said, "MSCC is conceived to provide a model for meeting the increasing demands for comprehensive and affordable cancer care. The mandate for the institute is to create in India a center of global excellence in clinical care as well as cutting edge translational research.

"Within a year the institute is already attracting cancer patients with specific therapeutic and reconstructive challenges from India and abroad seeking tailored solutions and advanced care. MSCC is one of the few global leaders in Cancer Care capable of providing individualized characterization and tailored therapy options. The current collaboration compliments our vision to be at the forefront of global discoveries and clinical care," he added.

Professor Vijay Chandru, Chairman and CEO, Strand said "Over the last decade Strand has evolved from being a tools provider to a serious Applications Science Company with a focus on cancer biology. It is a privilege to engage in an agreement with Narayana Hrudalaya to continue to advance important translational research that will lead to a better understanding of cancer to help patients in India and around the world. This in turn will hopefully lead to developing better diagnostic techniques and therapeutics."

Dr. Moni Abraham Kuriakose, Professor and Director of the Department of Surgical Oncology and Chief, Head and Neck Oncology Services of the MSCC commented that "Head and neck cancer is a major problem of the Indian subcontinent. Being an Indian problem we strongly believe that the solution has to come from within and has to come from systematic research.

"The major bottleneck in biomedical research is application of basic science developments into tangible clinical benefit. We are excited about the current collaboration, where the clinicians can work together with research groups to find solutions to cancer problems of our country. One of the areas where we are making path breaking discovery is in understanding head and neck cancer at the molecular level to develop "personalized treatment for patients," Kuriakose added.

Dr. Binay Panda, Head of Ganit Labs and Sr. Vice President of Strand commented, this is for the first time scientists from as diverse fields as computer science, head and neck surgery, genome biology are coming together in India to undertake such a comprehensive study. Having a breakthrough in this area would have a transformational impact on our society. The current collaboration that is translational in nature would provide unique opportunity to young and talented scientists in our country to get exposure to cutting-edge scientific tools and training in genome biology and personalized medicine. (ANI)