Thermo Fisher Scientific launches Cell Therapy Collaboration Center Program in Singapore to accelerate therapy development across Asia Pacific

Program supports cell therapy innovators in the development of next-generation, life-saving drugs and therapeutics through every stage of their journey to improve patient outcomes

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the launch of its new Cell Therapy Collaboration Center Program in Singapore to accelerate cell therapy development across the Asia Pacific region. The center, based in Singapore, will serve as the Asia Pacific hub to provide cell and gene therapy (CGT) developers with tailored support on their path to clinical manufacturing and commercial success.

“Through our Cell Therapy Collaboration Program, we are able to offer our collaborators deep scientific engagement, instrument, and workflow support to help them optimize their manufacturing process while refining our cell therapy solutions to meet real-world challenges,” said Betty Woo, vice president and general manager of cell and gene therapy, Thermo Fisher.

Old age and chronic diseases, such as cancer and heart disease, continue to be the leading causes of death in Japan. According to latest statistics, the estimated number of cancer deaths in Japan in 2021 was approximately 378,600. Although slightly lower than the number of confirmed deaths in 2020, which was approximately 380,000, the forecasted cases are still prominent[1]. This comes alongside the Asia Pacific region being home to almost half the world’s cancer cases, which is expected to increase by 35% by 2030[2].

Despite significant scientific breakthroughs and clinical milestone achievements, the cell and gene therapy industry continues to face persistent challenges in manufacturing scalability, logistic constraints, regulatory barriers and talent shortages which hinder the progress of potentially life-saving therapies.

To address these challenges, Thermo Fisher Scientific has developed a portfolio (https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home/clinical/cell-gene-therapy/cell-therapy/cell-therapy-manufacturing-solutions.html?cid=cdi_cgx_sbu_r01_co_cp1429_pjt7559_cgt000000_0pr_nwr_pr_awa_og_s00_wc-pr) of integrated solutions and services to support cell and gene therapy developers from clinical research to commercial manufacturing. Researchers and developers collaborating with Thermo Fisher Scientific in this program can expect the following benefits:

Access to state-of-the-art Thermo Fisher technologies, including Cell Therapy Systems (CTS) products such as CTS DynaCellect Magnetic Separation System (https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home/life-science/bioproduction/gibco-bioprocessing/magnetic-separation-system.html), CTS Xenon Electroporation System (https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home/clinical/cell-gene-therapy/cell-therapy/cell-therapy-manufacturing-solutions/xenon-electroporation-system.html) and CTS Rotea Counterflow Centrifugation System (https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home/clinical/cell-gene-therapy/cell-therapy/cell-therapy-manufacturing-solutions/rotea-counterflow-centrifugation-system.html)

Protocol and process optimization from Thermo Fisher technical product experts

Product-specific regulatory support to facilitate and expedite clinical translation

Ongoing support, ranging from product and process scale-up to supply chain readiness and de-risking, as cell therapy programs advance to commercialization

“Being a part of Thermo Fisher’s collaboration program has helped us to evaluate the potential of utilizing automated, closed cell therapy solutions to develop a novel process of manufacturing cell therapies on the OmniCAR platform using non-viral methods,” said Rebecca Lim, senior vice president of scientific affairs, Prescient Technologies

From process development to technology transfer and scalability, this collaboration program will enable cell therapy innovators to accelerate the accessibility of these potentially curative therapies to patients.

The program officially kicked off in October last year at the 2022 Cell & Gene Therapy Expert Forum Event with over 50 leading developers and thought leaders across the Asia Pacific region.

“Across the cell and gene therapy sector, it is clear that no one company or entity can operate in isolation. Collaborations and partnerships across the ecosystem are vital to overcome key obstacles and accelerate speed-to-market of next-generation therapies. Efforts such as Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Collaboration Center Program can be useful enablers to accelerate development in Asia,” said A/Prof Danny Soon, chief executive officer, Consortium for Clinical Research and Innovation, Singapore.

To request more information about Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Cell Therapy Collaboration Center Program, please visit thermofisher.com/collabcenterpartnership. (https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home/global/page-not-available.html)

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science, with annual revenue of approximately $40 billion. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Whether our customers are accelerating life sciences research, solving complex analytical challenges, increasing productivity in their laboratories, improving patient health through diagnostics or the development and manufacture of life-changing therapies, we are here to support them. Our global team delivers an unrivaled combination of innovative technologies, purchasing convenience and pharmaceutical services through our industry-leading brands, including Thermo Scientific, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Fisher Scientific, Unity Lab Services, Patheon and PPD. For more information, please visit www.thermofisher.com (
https://www.thermofisher.cn/cn/zh/home.html).

1: https://ganjoho.jp/public/qa_links/report/statistics/pdf/cancer_statistics_2022_fig_E.pdf
2: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/07/the-fight-against-cancer-in-asia-pacific-is-working-heres-why/

SOURCE: Thermo Fisher Scientific