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Biomedical research sector gets boost with launch of new hub

SINGAPORE — The Republic’s biomedical research sector received a boost yesterday with the launch of a S$60 million hub that will focus on developing local medical technology (MedTech).

Mr Iswaran being briefed on the ONCO-MiR DX gastric test — a blood-based, non-invasive test to diagnose gastric cancer — during his tour of the Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub. Photo: Ooi Boon Keong

Mr Iswaran being briefed on the ONCO-MiR DX gastric test — a blood-based, non-invasive test to diagnose gastric cancer — during his tour of the Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub. Photo: Ooi Boon Keong

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SINGAPORE — The Republic’s biomedical research sector received a boost yesterday with the launch of a S$60 million hub that will focus on developing local medical technology (MedTech).

The Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub, anchored by the Agency for Science and Technology Research (A*Star), will bring together clinicians, researchers, entrepreneurs and industry professionals, and integrate their expertise — with the aim of accelerating the creation of diagnostic products and growing the talent pool.

Chief executive officer Sidney Yee said yesterday the hub hopes to make a difference in three areas — delivering impactful products, empowering start-ups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and engaging overseas partners.

The start-ups and SMEs, in particular, would be able to “de-risk” as they tap the technical and regulatory know-how of the hub’s partners.

“SMEs will be able to compete on a global platform and attract more people to do more highly-skilled work,” Dr Yee added.

Speaking at the hub’s launch yesterday, Second Minister for Trade and Industry S Iswaran pointed out that global demand for MedTech products remains strong and the growth of the sector is promising.

In fact, Asia’s MedTech revenues accounted for a quarter of the global market last year. Singapore is currently home to more than 30 global MedTech companies. Between 2009 and last year, the sector’s manufacturing output grew by 50 per cent to reach S$5.1 billion here.

The hub will have a tangible impact on healthcare and the economy, said Mr Iswaran, who is also the Second Minister for Home Affairs.

“Collaborations with the clinical community will leverage the efforts of Singapore’s leading clinicians and medical consortia in areas such as oncology, ophthalmology, cardiology and infectious diseases, as well as provide access to Asian patient cohorts,” he said. “This will support the development of cost-effective diagnostic solutions for diseases endemic to Asia and tailored to the Asian phenotype.”

The DxD Hub, which has been operational since the start of the year, has seven projects in the pipeline and more than 70 others under consideration. Dr Yee hopes to have 12 to 15 projects in the hub at any one time.

One of the projects involves local start-up MiRXES, which has two blood test kits in the works.

One kit assesses the risk of a patient having gastric cancer and thus allows for early detection; while the other indicates whether patients, who test positive for a mammogram, have to go for a further biopsy to confirm the presence of breast cancer. Clinical trials for both products will start next year.

Dr Zhou Lihan, MiRXES’ co-founder, said: “Previously, start-ups would have to find their own way and make their own connections. That’s difficult because we don’t have the necessary resources, connections and credibility.

“Having DxD Hub as an enabler allows start-ups to be able to connect to more partners globally and bring the product to market in a faster time.”

With the hub’s support, Dr Zhou said the time taken for a research idea to move from the drawing board to the clinical trial stage has been halved to 18 months.

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