Pfizer is now a member of the Worldwide Innovative Network (WIN) in personalized cancer medicine consortium. Initiated in 2010 by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (USA) and the Institut Gustave Roussy (France), the WIN Consortium is a global network of academic, industry, and patient advocacy organizations whose goal is to make personalized cancer care a reality for patients worldwide. WIN is a nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization headquartered in Paris.

According to the consortium, Pfizer’s focus on the development of drugs using a precision medicine approach, coupled with the company’s experience in the development of oncology therapeutics, align the company’s goals and capabilities with the mission of the WIN Consortium. As the newest member of the consortium, Pfizer should play a role in shaping the future achievements of this collective group.

“Bringing the latest advances in personalized cancer medicine to the patient requires collaboration and partnerships between multiple sectors of the health sciences community,” said Professor Alexander Eggermont, general director, Institut Gustave Roussy and vice-chairman of the WIN Consortium. “Pfizer’s strong commitment to the development of targeted cancer therapeutics and its breadth of expertise in oncology drug development will play a key role in accelerating the pace at which patients can benefit from advances in personalized cancer medicine. We are proud to have Pfizer as WIN’s first pharmaceutical partner and believe that this collaboration will benefit cancer patients worldwide.”

Other members of the WIN Consortium include Agilent Technologies, GE Healthcare, and Life Technologies; Oracle Health Sciences joined in October.

In June of this year, the consortium launched WINTHER, a clinical trial that, according to the consortium, offers a choice of therapy guided by the biology to the majority of patients included in the study. Complete biological analyses will be carried out (DNA, RNA, and microRNA) from a double biopsy of the tumor (or metastasis) and normal tissue of each patient. The therapeutic decision will be discussed based on an estimated drug efficacy scoring bioinformatics tool based on these investigations. WINTHER includes about 200 patients with different types of metastatic solid tumors resistant to the last line of treatment. It will be conducted within two years and will start early 2013.

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