Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center and artificial intelligence-driven health tech company Sophia Genetics have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate in a precision oncology venture.
The goal of the collaboration is to use MSK’s clinical data and Sophia Genetics’ AI platform to create a precision medicine hub for cancer patients around the world, the organizations said in a June 6 announcement.
Sophia Genetics’ precision medicine platform has been used to analyze more than 2.5 million cases since 2014, the company said. Additionally, MSK’s in-house next-generation sequencing platform has sequenced more than 150,000 tumor samples since 2014.
“This partnership represents the future of applied precision oncology, where clinical expertise meets cutting-edge AI and robotics, with the potential to transform cancer care at scale,” Michael Frank, director of digital health business development at MSK, said in a statement. “By combining MSK’s rich clinical assets with Sophia Genetic’s powerful digital platform, we aim to create a new paradigm in providing personalized insights to patients.”
Details regarding this strategic initiative have not yet been finalized, but the organizations say they envision Sophia to serve as their hub’s AI and analytics platform. MSK provides clinical and scientific leadership with clinical data.
The two organizations have previously collaborated on innovations in diagnostic technology.
Ross Muken, president of Sophia Genetics, said in a statement that his company’s efforts with MSK are focused on “expanding the reach of MSK’s clinical intelligence,” and the partnership is “the most ambitious expression of that mission to date.”
“Over the past several years, we have built SOPHiA DDM into a foundational AI and analytics layer for precision medicine, helping healthcare organizations around the world unlock the value of their clinical data,” said Muken. “By combining MSK’s clinical leadership and deep clinical data with Sophia Genetic’s AI platform and global infrastructure, the precision medicine hub we are discussing will help move precision oncology into the multimodal era and bring the benefits of MSK’s precision oncology to patients, regardless of where they receive care.”
