Quest will provide research consulting,
laboratory testing and data analytics services to generate
diagnostics insights supporting population health strategy for
hepatitis C
SECAUCUS, N.J., Dec. 7, 2023
/PRNewswire/ -- Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the nation's leading
provider of diagnostic information services, today announced that
it has been awarded a contract by the United States Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designed to assess the burden
of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the United
States
Quest was awarded a multi-year agreement following a competitive
bid. The agreement marks a new phase of a decade-long collaboration
between Quest and the CDC to improve hepatitis public health
research based on insights from laboratory data. Under the new
agreement, Quest will perform both HCV antibody testing and
molecular RNA testing using HIPAA-deidentified "remnant" specimens
randomly selected from clinical test specimens. The goal is to gain
a better understanding of the burden of hepatitis C infection in
the United States.
"The longstanding collaboration between Quest and the CDC shows
the power of strategic public-private collaborations to inform
public health strategy in critical health areas," said Harvey W. Kaufman, M.D., medical director and
head of the Quest Diagnostics Health Trends® research program. "Our
prior work together with the CDC has shown substantial opportunity
to improve care and treatment for individuals with hepatitis C, and
we expect this additional research collaboration to build on that
progress, informing public policy to reduce the incidence of
hepatitis C in the United
States."
Prior agreements between Quest and the CDC involved analysis of
laboratory results from tests ordered by healthcare providers for
patients with suspected hepatitis infection. In 2013, the two
organizations formed an agreement to jointly analyze de-identified
hepatitis C testing data for "Baby Boomers," or individuals born
from 1945 through 1965. Since 2012, Quest has supported the CDC to
advance public health by providing deidentified laboratory results
for hepatitis A, B, C and E. All shared laboratory test results are
deidentified and HIPAA-compliant.
Approximately 2 million Americans are infected with hepatitis C,
but most are unaware they have it. Left untreated, the disease can
progress to advanced stages, including liver cancer and death.
Laboratory testing can identify infection in early stages, when
treatment may be curative. In 2020, the CDC recommended
one-time hepatitis C testing for all individuals aged 18 years of
age or older, and that all pregnant women be tested for HCV during
each pregnancy. CDC also recommends routine periodic testing for
people with risk factors.
Quest is a leading provider of hepatitis testing services, with
a comprehensive test menu of hepatitis screening and monitoring
assays. In addition, Quest has the largest private laboratory
database, with more than 60 billion data points. The company
routinely develops research, called Quest Diagnostics Health
Trends®, based on this data with the CDC and academic experts.
In June 2023, the CDC, published
an MMWR report based on Quest Diagnostics Health Trends data that
found only one in three adults with evidence of hepatitis C viral
infection have achieved viral clearance, despite the availability
of curative therapies. Other Quest-CDC research collaborations have
focused on the fentanyl drug crisis and HIV, as well as COVID-19
variant tracking using Quest's next-generation sequencing.
About Quest Diagnostics
Quest Diagnostics empowers people to take action to improve
health outcomes. Derived from the world's largest database of
clinical lab results, our diagnostic insights reveal new avenues to
identify and treat disease, inspire healthy behaviors and improve
health care management. Quest annually serves one in three adult
Americans and half the physicians and hospitals in the United States, and our nearly 50,000
employees understand that, in the right hands and with the right
context, our diagnostic insights can inspire actions that transform
lives. www.QuestDiagnostics.com.
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SOURCE Quest Diagnostics