Belgium’s healthcare institution Jessa Ziekenhuis is set to implement SOPHiA GENETICS’ platform for cancer care in the country.

This collaboration will see the integration of the SOPHiA DDM platform throughout the hospital's pathology operations, with the goal of unifying next-generation sequencing (NGS) workflows for genomic testing and oncology research for patients.

Jessa Ziekenhuis caters to a population exceeding 530,000 people and handles more than 3,000 oncology RNA and DNA samples each year.

The hospital will deploy six Sophia Genetics applications, covering liquid biopsy analysis, solid tumours, and haematologic malignancies.

This approach standardises library preparation, automates protocols, and fully integrates the workflow with the hospital’s laboratory information management system, ensuring seamless data flow and compliance with national ComPerMed guidelines.

The integrated platform decreases manual effort by 30%–50%, reduces total expenses by up to 25%, and cuts turnaround times.

It also promotes utilisation of sequencing resources and supports scalable expansion.

Furthermore, Jessa Ziekenhuis will utilise the SOPHiA DDM Dispatch feature to share a NovaSeq sequencer with AZ Delta in Belgium, as part of the Bridge consortium. This collaboration optimises sequencing capacity and encourages knowledge exchange between the two institutions.

Jessa Ziekenhuis Laboratory for Molecular Diagnostics clinical pathologist Dr Brigitte Maes said: “At Jessa Ziekenhuis, we are strongly committed to innovation to provide our patients with access to the most advanced oncological care.

“Through our collaboration with Sophia Genetics, we can fully harmonise and accelerate our NGS workflows. This step enables us to generate molecular insights faster and more accurately, which benefits both clinical decision-making and our research projects.”

Sophia Genetics EMEA managing director Kevin Puylaert said: “Our collaboration with Jessa Ziekenhuis exemplifies how Sophia Genetics can support leading institutions in scaling their genomics capabilities while ensuring the highest possible quality and efficiency.

“By delivering a fully automated, cloud-native solution tailored to their oncology needs, we’re empowering Jessa Ziekenhuis to unify workflows, accelerate insights, and elevate patient care across Belgium.”