-Hartwig Medical Foundation, a pioneer in deploying complete genomic profiling to improve oncology outcomes, and Ultima Genomics, a developer of a revolutionary new ultra-high throughput next-generation sequencing (NGS) architecture, today announced the deployment of Ultima’s UG 100 sequencing system and its proprietary ppmSeq technology for improving precision oncology testing and research. This collaboration aims to reduce test costs and make complete genome-based cancer diagnostics accessible for more patients to have better informed cancer treatment. In parallel, platform strengths will be explored for minimal residual disease detection in blood of cancer patients with a one-size-fits-all solution that builds on pre-existing complete tumor profile information

The Company also launched ppmSeq^TM, a unique technology native to the UG 100^TMplatform that enables ultra-high part-per-million accuracy, or Q60, for calling single nucleotide variants (SNVs). Low-cost sequencing, combined with high throughput data generation and ultra-high accuracy for SNVs, has the potential to revolutionize oncology treatment by increasing test accessibility and enabling more frequent monitoring to assist treatment escalation and de-escalation. Hartwig plans to leverage the unique advantages of the UG 100^TM and ppmSeq^TM technology to perform whole genome tumor and germline profiling and minimal residual disease (MRD) testing in routine diagnostic procedures together with partner hospitals. Data from consented patients will be added to the existing resource of >7,000 samples in the current database and made available for scientific research to improve care for tomorrow’s cancer patients.

“Collaborating with Hartwig to deploy our technology toward whole genome cancer profiling, MRD testing and generating genomic information at scale is an exciting milestone,” said Gilad Almogy, CEO of Ultima Genomics. “Hartwig has been an industry pioneer who has successfully demonstrated the power of genetic data and more comprehensive genetic analysis to improve outcomes in oncology. We built our platform to specifically relieve the constraints that large testing leaders like Hartwig have in how they deploy NGS technology across the continuum of care. The combination of low cost, extreme depth and breadth, and ppmSeq^TM for ultra-sensitive SNV detection can be transformational for oncology testing applications. We hope to enable our customers to perform more comprehensive analyses, detect disease at earlier stages, and provide efficient solutions for disease and therapy response monitoring.”

"Ultima’s dramatically different approach and its potential is exciting for our industry,” said Edwin Cuppen, scientific director at Hartwig. “Access to lower cost sequencing will relieve significant constraints labs have for providing patients access to more comprehensive genetic testing across the continuum of oncology care. Furthermore, lower costs can enable Hartwig to affordably create genetic datasets at national population scale to improve cancer research and ultimately outcomes for future patients. In addition to benefiting from the lower sequencing costs of the UG 100^TM, we will explore the potential of Ultima’s ppmSeq^TM technology, which represents a significant breakthrough for applications requiring extreme SNV accuracy like MRD and therapy response monitoring. We look forward to collaborating with Ultima and being a leading pioneer of this technology in Europe to improve testing for oncology patients.”