A two-year study, using the health and genetic records of 100 000 consenting patients from a Durban hospital, is expected to improve understanding of why certain diseases affect some people more than others and why they progress differently in each person, and inform possible future treatments.
The researchers hope the records from the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH) patients can provide critical information and help predict risks of diseases and responses to treatment, reports TimesLIVE.
Discover Me SA, a study to be conducted over the next two years, has the potential to transform patient care by improving the accuracy of diagnoses, including earlier detection of disease, and enable the development of more targeted personalised treatment.
The research may also help improve existing treatments and discover new ones.
University of KwaZulu-Natal emeritus professor and co-chief investigator of Discover Me SA, Prof essor Ayesha Motala, said IALCH was probably the only public-service hospital in the country that has a fully integrated EHR system.
“The study will also provide a model to understand the value and impact of this information on broader populations, inform future strategies to improve patient access to their health information, and help involve and empower them in their healthcare and management.”
Motala said Discover Me SA was uncharted territory for many investigators.
“A study like this requires many role-players, co-ordination and planning, including, first and foremost, the participants (patients); the various departments in the hospitals for their approvals; hospital management; the research (data collection) team on the ground; local co-investigators (clinical and laboratory); the IT facility at IALCH; my chief co-investigator at Omnigen; his team; and funders.”
The study is sponsored by Omnigen Biodata, a research and development company based in Cambridge, UK. Investigators will collaborate with Omnigen Biodata; IALCH; the KwaZulu-Natal Health Department; Regeneron Genetics Centre; AstraZeneca; Roche, including Genentech, a member of the Roche Group; GSK; Pfizer; and Alnylam.
Omnigen and co-chief investigator Manjinder Sandhu said the collaboration presented a unique opportunity for discovery science in Africa and continuing efforts to expand genomic data resources and support scientific communities across the region.
“It has the potential to enable innovation in drug development and health and care solutions, influencing the future of patient health and care for generations.”
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