HRD Testing Belongs in the Clinic. Genekor Medical Is Proving It.
How a Romanian molecular diagnostics lab turned shallow whole genome sequencing into a routine clinical workflow, and published the evidence to back it up.
Homologous recombination deficiency testing has a scale problem.
The science is settled. HRD status shapes treatment decisions in ovarian cancer and increasingly in breast, prostate, and pancreatic oncology. Reliable Genomic Instability Scores can identify patients likely to benefit from PARP inhibitors and platinum therapies. The clinical value is clear.
The bottleneck is delivery. Too many labs still treat HRD analysis as a specialist exercise: expensive sequencing protocols, heavy bioinformatics overhead, long turnaround times. For laboratories outside major Western European hubs, the gap between what precision oncology promises and what routine diagnostics can deliver remains wide.
Genekor Medical, a molecular diagnostics laboratory based in Romania, is closing that gap.
Building an HRD workflow that scales
Genekor serves a growing oncology caseload across Romania and the surrounding region. The lab runs NGS panels for somatic oncology and hereditary disease, with a strong focus on delivering clinically actionable results fast.
When the team evaluated platforms for GIS calculation, the requirements were specific. They needed a system that could take raw FASTQ data through to a reliable Genomic Instability Score, with an automated pipeline that would hold up under routine clinical volumes. Extensive in house bioinformatics infrastructure was off the table.
SeqOne, introduced through regional distributor Varelas, met those requirements. The platform processes FASTQ files end to end, with dedicated optimisation for HRD and GIS analysis. Over roughly one year of use, SeqOne has become the backbone of Genekor's HRD testing workflow.
"SeqOne was selected for its dedicated HRD analysis capabilities and its ability to calculate the Genomic Instability Score directly from FASTQ data," says Amalia Chirnogea, MSc., Molecular Biology Coordinator at Genekor. "The platform offers a streamlined and automated workflow that reduces bioinformatics complexity while ensuring consistent and reliable results."
From publication to patient impact
The real proof point came in 2025, when Genekor published research on HRD assessment using shallow whole genome sequencing. The study explored whether a lower depth sequencing approach could match standard methods for GIS calculation, a question with direct implications for cost and access in markets where precision oncology tools remain scarce.
SeqOne's standardised analytical framework made the study possible. The platform automated complex bioinformatics steps and ensured reproducibility across samples, allowing Genekor to translate a research grade approach into something a clinical lab can run day to day.
"SeqOne played an important role in bridging the gap between high level research and routine clinical practice," Amalia notes. "This has been especially valuable in Romania, where access to cost effective yet reliable HRD testing is critical for expanding precision oncology."
That sentence carries weight. In markets where genomic testing infrastructure is still maturing, the ability to run validated HRD analysis on a streamlined platform changes what labs can offer their patients.
What makes this work in practice
Genekor points to three differentiators that set SeqOne apart from alternatives they evaluated:
- End to end FASTQ processing. No intermediate tools, no manual handoffs. Raw sequencing data goes in; a clinically meaningful GIS comes out.
- Purpose built HRD and GIS optimisation. The platform is designed around the specific analytical requirements of HRD testing, which matters for accuracy and reproducibility at clinical scale.
- Operational simplicity. Advanced bioinformatics capabilities without the corresponding infrastructure burden. Labs can implement complex genomic analyses with the team they already have.
The support experience has reinforced the technical fit. Genekor describes onboarding as smooth, with responsive technical assistance and consistent follow up throughout the first year. In a clinical diagnostic environment, where downtime translates directly to delayed patient results, that responsiveness matters.
The bigger picture
Genekor's experience illustrates something important about where precision oncology is heading. The challenge is no longer whether HRD testing works. The challenge is making it accessible, affordable, and operationally sustainable for laboratories serving the patients who need it.
For regional labs evaluating their options, Genekor's recommendation is straightforward: "SeqOne represents a well balanced solution that combines scientific rigor with real world clinical applicability."
The evidence, published and operational, supports that view.
