UK-based GENinCode PLC just announced a significant commercial partnership with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) to manufacture, sell, and distribute its CARDIO inCode-Score test. This is the kind of deal that transforms a diagnostic company from "interesting technology" to "real commercial scale."
How the Partnership Works
The collaboration spans the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. That's a lot of geography, and it positions GENinCode's test to reach a substantially larger patient population than the company could access on its own.
CARDIO inCode-Score is a clinically validated polygenic risk score that identifies an individual's inherited genetic risk for heart disease. The process is straightforward: take a saliva or blood sample, extract DNA, and score it against known genetic markers. The result tells you whether someone has an elevated genetic predisposition to heart disease, which opens the door to preventive measures like lifestyle modifications or early treatment interventions.
Here's where the regulatory pathway gets interesting. Before receiving FDA Medical Device approval, U.S. laboratories will be introduced to CARDIO inCode-Score as a Lab Developed Test (LDT) for heart disease prevention. Once the FDA gives its blessing, the partnership expands to full-scale manufacturing and distribution of the device to laboratories and testing centers nationwide. GENinCode plans to follow a similar regulatory and commercial approach in the EMEA market.
The Market Opportunity
The numbers behind this partnership are compelling. The U.S. cardiovascular devices market is valued at $22.8 billion, while the EU market sits at €12.5 billion. Perhaps more importantly, about 80% of heart disease and stroke cases are preventable. That creates a massive addressable market for a test that can identify genetic risk early enough to make prevention meaningful.
The CARDIO inCode-Score test uses GENinCode's SITAB system for clinical testing, AI-powered bioinformatics, and risk reporting. Recently, the test received New York State licensure, completing its coverage across all U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services states. The test is now included in the 2025 Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule with an average reimbursement of around $500 per test. That reimbursement rate matters because it determines whether labs will actually adopt the test.
GENinCode continues working with the FDA and expects to submit additional requested data to complete its De Novo assessment in the first quarter of 2026.
Matthew Walls, GENinCode's CEO, captured the significance of the partnership: "We are delighted to announce this milestone collaboration with Thermo Fisher Scientific to scale CARDIO inCode-Score across the U.S. and EMEA markets. The collaboration advances our commercial pathway and will accelerate the adoption of CARDIO inCode-Score well beyond our current capabilities. The collaboration also underpins our US-FDA and EU-IVDR Medical Device 2026 expansion plans."
Thermo Fisher's Recent Expansion
This partnership fits into Thermo Fisher's broader strategy of expanding its life sciences and diagnostics capabilities. In October, the company announced plans to acquire Clario Holdings for $8.875 billion in cash, plus potential future earnout and other performance-based payments.
That acquisition enhances Thermo Fisher's digital and data capabilities, particularly leveraging AI to accelerate clinical research, improve data insights, and boost efficiency in drug development. The goal is helping pharmaceutical and biotech customers bring therapies to patients faster while maximizing R&D returns.
TMO Price Action: Thermo Fisher Scientific shares were down 2.00% at $568.87 at the time of publication on Thursday.