Indivumed's Cancer Database Reaches a Global Scale Through Partnership With the National Cancer Tissue Biobank (NCTB), Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India

CHENNAI and HAMBURG, Germany, February 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Indivumed, GmbH (Indivumed), a world leader in precision oncology headquartered in Hamburg, Germany and The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), the country's premier academic research institution, announced today a collaboration to support the first Indian national cancer data base and biobank for use in precision cancer research.

IITM and Indivumed signed an agreement with an initial three-year term. The collaboration will include collection of many types of cancer, such as lung, breast, colorectal and pancreatic, to name a few. Initially physicians and patients residing within the state of Tamil Nadu with an approximate population of more than 78 million will be provided the opportunity to participate, with the hopes to expand the collection throughout the country.

IITM will join a worldwide network of clinical and research institutions within Germany, Poland and the United States, enabling researchers to access a multi-national biobank of specimens and annotated clinical data collected and preserved under Indivumed unique scientific standards.

"Partnering with IITM is an exciting expansion of the Indivumed mission to impact precision medicine in cancer on a global scale," said Hartmut Juhl, MD, founder and CEO of Indivumed. "With world class scientists and state-of-the-art technology, IITM is well positioned to advance cancer research. Our institutions have a shared commitment to attaining individualized cancer diagnosis and treatment for every patient based on reliable clinical data and molecularly intact biospecimens," Juhl went on to say.

Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras said of this collaboration, "Indivumed is a world leader in tissue collection and preservation and will drive meaningful innovation for physicians, patients and researchers. By participating in the Indivumed research network, we will join with the global scientific community to fight cancer and have access to a critical mass of biological samples and clinical data for use in unique clinical research for our community. IITM is committed to being on the cutting-edge of precision medicine for personalized cancer treatment."

"The collection and preservation of human tissue is vital to enable the most impactful medical research," commented Dr. S. Mahalingam, Professor in the Department of Biotechnology at the Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta School of Biosciences and Faculty-in-charge of National Cancer Tissue Biobank. "Importantly", Mahalingam said, "The partnership with Indivumed will provide our team access to its internationally leading biobanking standards, enabling the preservation of the molecular profile of cancer patients to allow for a better understanding of the interaction between genetic changes (DNA mutations) and cell biology, an essential ingredient to developing targeted cancer therapies."

About IIT Madras (http://www.iitm.ac.in) 

IIT Madras is one among the foremost institutes of national importance in higher technological education, basic and applied research. In 1956, the German Government offered technical assistance for establishing an institute of higher education in engineering in India. The first Indo-German agreement in Bonn, West Germany for the establishment of the Indian Institute of Technology at Madras was signed in 1959. 

IIT Madras is a residential institute with nearly 600 faculty, 9000 students and more than 1500 administrative & supporting staff and is a self-contained campus located in a beautiful wooded land of about 250 hectares. It has established itself as a premier centre for teaching, research and industrial consultancy in the country. 

The Institute has sixteen academic/research departments and many national as well as international advanced research centres/facilities in various disciplines of engineering and pure sciences. IIT Madras jointly with the Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India established the first National Cancer Tissue Biobank facility. A faculty of international repute, a brilliant student community, excellent technical & supporting staff and an effective administration have all contributed to the pre-eminent status of IIT Madras. The campus is located in the city of Chennai, previously known as Madras. Chennai is the state capital of Tamil Nadu, a southern state in India. 

IITM has been ranked #1 amongst research and teaching institutions in Engineering in the India Rankings 2016 released by the National Institutional Ranking Framework, Ministry of Human Resources Development, Govt. of India- https://www.nirfindia.org/engg 

Join IIT Madras on Facebook: ReachIITM; on Twitter: @ReachIITM 

About Indivumed: 

INDIVUMED, an ISO certified global oncology research company based in Hamburg, Germany, has established the world's leading Cancer Database and biobank, retaining unique patterns of biomolecules such as RNA, DNA, and proteins as they existed in the human body. This Cancer Database makes possible multi-omics capabilities that will allow for characterization of samples and data such as whole genome gene expression analysis, expression analysis of cancer relevant proteins, expression analysis of cancer relevant phosphoproteins and bioinformatic solutions for integrating molecular, biological and clinical information. 

Indivumed's products and services allow for in-depth understanding of the underlying mechanisms of a patient's cancer, addressing important demands in translational research and molecular diagnostics to support implementation of personalized healthcare. 

For more information, please visit http://www.indivumed.com

CONTACT FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES
Indivumed GmbH
Hartmut Juhl, MD
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Tel.: +49/40 - 41 33-83-0
E-mail: press@indivumed.com

IIT Madras:
Bhavani Giddu 
Footprint Global Communications
Cell: +91-9999500262
Email: bhavani.giddu@footprintglobal.com  

Palak Sakhuja 
Footprint Global Communications
Cell: +91-9582338333
Email: palak.sakhuja@footprintglobal.com