By Gbenga Olatunji
Syndicate Bio, a biotech platform company committed to advancing genomics and precisionmedicine initiatives across the world’s most diverse regions, has announced itsstrategic partnership with the National Institute for Cancer Research andTreatment (NICRAT).
Ene-Obong, (2nd l), Malami-Aliyu, (3rd l), CON, Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Sen Atiku Abubakar Bagudu, (5th l), CEO, MEDICAID, Dr. Zainab Bagudu, (6th L) and other dignitaries after the memorandum of understanding, recently in Abuja.
NICRAT,the foremost institute that provides national leadership on cancer research,treatment and control in Nigeria alongside Syndicate Bio have initiated the “Cancer Genome Nigeria” project, a study aimed at bridging cancer disparity gaps by studying the most prevalent cancers across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones and 300+ ethnolinguistic groups.
Launched in September 2023 by founder, Dr Abasi Ene-Obong, alongside co-founders Dr. Jumi Popoola and Estelle Dogbo, Syndicate Bio is leveraging collaborations with governments, pharmaceutical companies, academia and other key industry stakeholders to deepen local precision medicine impact while generating invaluable data sets that improve global health outcomes and accelerates drug discovery and development.
This partnership is set to pioneer the use of NGS technology in Nigeria to decode the genomic profile of prevalent cancers. This will provide patient-centriccare, access to life-saving diagnostics, personalised genetic reports and therapeutics.
Ene-Obong said: “The disparities in cancer care in Nigeria and across Africa, representan ecosystem challenge that demands tailored solutions.
“Syndicate Bio’s approach forges collaborative engagement with existing healthcare systems and stakeholders as a means to drive local impact across Africa and inclusive advancements in global genomics.
“Thisis why our partnership with NICRAT is important for the advancement of cancerresearch and treatment outcomes in Nigeria, the impact of which will be felt across the world through the inclusion of diverse genomes in global cancerresearch. NICRAT’s reach will ensure that the benefit of this study is felt across all of Nigeria’s geopolitical regions and enable the delivery of precision medicine to patients in Nigeria.”
Commenting on the partnership, Director General, National Institute of Cancer Research and Treatment, Prof. Usman Malami Aliyu, said, “Collaborating with technical partners like Syndicate Bio is a pivotal moment in our research and treatment.This study, designed by and for Nigerians will change diagnostics and the long term care of our country’s cancer patients.
“This bold initiative will set the tone for ethical research at scale, provide realtime benefits to patients and their caregivers and will help generate data to understand mutational signatures in cancers and their frequencies in Nigeria.”