ACTIVITIES

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Webinars

  1. IQN PATH WEBINAR STANDARDIZATION IN TMB ASSESSMENT: HOW FAR WE ARE

    Webinar held live on 16 June 2021 and the recorded version is available here.  

  2. ESP-IQN PATH WEBINAR ON BIOMARKER TESTING

    Webinar held live on 20 October 2021 and the recorded version is available here.

  3. ESP-IQN PATH WEBINAR ON PD-L1 TESTING

    Webinar held live on 3 November 2021 and the recorded version is available here.

  4. IQN Path – ECPC – EFPIA –– QARAD WEBINAR 

    IVDR: IMPACT AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR A MOLECULAR PATHOLOGY LABORATORY

    Webinar held live on 25 November 2021 and the recorded version is available here.

     

2023 Meeting will be held as a hybrid event on 19-20 May 

A 2-day meeting on EQA in molecular pathology gathers the association’s academic and corporate members, project managers and the major stakeholders in the field. The programme offers an update on the projects and the future developments. Furthermore, the Board meeting and the General Meeting are held in this context.

The 2023 Meeting is on 19-20 May 2022 and here you can find the programme.

Projects

1. External Quality Assessment for EGFR Testing in cfDNAThe project aimed at identifying consensus and best practice in liquid biopsy testing. It furthermore allowed the identification and exchange of experiences to overcome common practical challenges for EQA design and implementation for liquid biopsy. The study is concluded in early 2020 and the report available.

2. Tumor Mutation Burden (TMB): from Recommendations for Testing to EQA schemes
The project will define recommendations for TMB assessment and validate control material for EQA schemes for TMB testing. A pilot phase is organised to define a European EQA scheme and compare TMB results from
different testing methods, thus enabling harmonization. The October 2020 update can be found here. The pilot phase concluded in early 2021 and the report is published in the Members – restricted area.

3. Proficiency testing, CBQA Readout
CBQAReadout.ca – An academic proficiency testing program for the assessment of pathologists’ and technologists’ accuracy of biomarker readout, endorsed by IQN Path and to which academic members have free
access. The focus of this new PT program is predictive immunohistochemistry biomarkers such as PD-L1 and is developing further modules to include challenges for various other assays and for technologists. The platform was launched in early 2020 and is in further expansion.

4. IQN Path/EFPIA, Access to Quality Biomarker Testing in Europe
Biomarker testing has become a critical tool to ensure the optimal delivery of care for cancer patients. However, across Europe, access to high quality biomarker tests is inconsistent. IQN Path and EFPIA, with the support and active participation of ECPC, have decided to work together with a consortium of industry, academic participants and patient organisations to address the challenges of biomarker testing and develop policy recommendations to ensure that all eligible patients have access to the ideal testing pathway. The project was launched in November 2019 and the policy recommendation paper will be published in February 2021 when the promotional campaign started.

Unlocking the potential of precision medicine in Europe – Improving cancer care through broader access to quality biomarker testing

The Press Release is available here: http://www.iqnpath.org/unlocking-the-potential-of-precision-medicine-in-europe-improving-cancer-care-through-broader-access-to-quality-biomarker-testing/

The Final Report is available here: http://www.iqnpath.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/unlocking-the-potential-of-precision-medicine-in-europe.pdf

The summary of the Report and its infographic can be found here: http://www.iqnpath.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Biomarker-Testing-Summary-Final-Version.pdf

The findings of the study, presented by L.E.K. Consulting, were discussed during a Webinar held in February 2021 and the recorded version can be assessed here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWlmrZagp0U&feature=youtu.be

ESMO Congress 2021:
Nicola Normanno presented the results of the project at the ESMO Congress in Paris on 18 September 2021:

Improving Cancer Care through Broader Access to Quality Biomarker Testing – An IQN Path, ECPC and EFPIA Initiative
The abstract is available here. 
The presentation is available here. 

The presentation was furthermore highlighted in the article of ESMO Daily Reporter “The tipping point of cancer biomarker quality”:

“Too often the access to quality biomarkers is undermined by poor knowledge on the need for quality assurance. Relying on the assumption that biomarkers bring ‘innovation’ without claiming quality may be appealing to some, perhaps not really to medical conservatives – and not to patients, for sure.“

Further initiatives include:

  • The keynote lecture at the VI International Forum for Personalised Medicine held by several Polish organisations on 22 April 2021.
  • A presentation was provided in September 2021 within the Precision Testing Project of Sharing Progress in Cancer Care Webinar entitled “Rules, collaborations and harmonisation to improve access to precision testing”.
  • The SEAP-IQN Path co-organised session held on 26 May 2021 at the national congress of the Spanish Society of Pathology and further activities are being organised for 2022.
  • See also the ESP-IQN Path Webinar held on 20 October 2021.
  • During the Annual Oncoage Meeting held in Nice, France on 18-19 November 2021, Nicola Normanno presented the “Status of biomarker testing in Europe”.
  • The presentation “Optimizing Use of Personalized Medicine and Diagnostics for Patients” was provided by Nicola Normanno at the DIA Diagnostics and Personalized Medicine Conference on 8 December 2021.
  • The subject was included in the debate “Europe’s beating cancer plan: Why a personalised approach matters” that was held by Challenge Cancer – EU Parliamentary Intergroup on 29 November 2021.
  • A workshop and roundtable to discuss the results for Belgium will be held on 11 February 2022 with an expert presentation provided by IQN Path President.
  • The key-note lecture at VI International Personalized Medicine Forum held by several Polish organisations on 31 May 2022.

Roundtables:

The initiatives to raise awareness and to call for actions on a national level are being organised in the format of Roundtables.

  • Roundtable in Greece, 15 July 2021, the programme is available here and the press release here. Several further initiatives are organised in 2021 and 2022 at a National level by ELLOK – Hellenik Federation of Cancer.
  • Roundtable in Italy was organised by FAVO – on 26 October 2021. Further information is available at https://www.favo.it/.

5. Test Performance Characteristics for EQA Programs
The project aims at increasing clarity by harmonizing terminology across proficiency testing programs starting by evaluating PT design under the lens of a test performance characteristics framework to assess how this applies to the current practices of various PT programs. The outcome will have positive global impact and set up the framework for future developments in PT, especially as it applies to predictive biomarkers. The study is being developed to be presented in 2021.

6. Pilot EQA scheme for fusion gene testing
The pilot schemes will track developments in clinical practice, focussing on RNA testing for fusion products. The first pilot scheme will be genotyping only, whilst the second shall also include assessment of clinical
interpretation and clerical accuracy/reporting practices. The project will be launched in 2021 and further information is available here.

7. Pilot EQA for liquid biopsy testing for multiple markers

The first IQN Path supported activity was a collaboration between EQA providers to develop an EQA to assess the standard of testing for the presence of cfDNA in plasma with the purpose of promoting high quality testing. There have been three EQA rounds successfully delivered; the first to determine the suitability of manufactured material and the subsequent rounds for clinical testing laboratories to assess the standard of cfDNA plasma testing and reporting of the presence of EGFR mutations. Laboratories continue to request the delivery of a cfDNA plasma testing for EGFR mutations and new developments in the field of cfDNA plasma testing for a more extensive range of biomarkers has initiated the demand from key stakeholders to extend the EQA remit to include more targets. The project that will be launched in 2021 foresees to develop two EQA pilots for the testing of cfDNA in plasma for a range of pathogenic single nucleotide variants (SNVs) and gene fusions in multiple genes e.g. EGFR, KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and PIK3CA.