Quest Diagnostics 2006 Annual Report Download - page 28

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facilities where specimens are collected, and are typically located in or near a building used by medical
professionals.
We operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We perform and report most routine tests within 24 hours. The
majority of test results are delivered electronically.
Esoteric Testing
Esoteric tests are those tests that require more sophisticated technology, equipment or materials, professional
“hands-on” attention from highly skilled and technical personnel, and that may be performed less frequently than
routine tests. Because it is not cost-effective for most hospital and clinical laboratories to perform low-volume
esoteric testing in-house, they generally refer many of these tests to an esoteric clinical testing laboratory that
specializes in performing these more complex tests. Due to their complexity, esoteric tests are generally
reimbursed at higher levels than routine tests.
Our two esoteric testing laboratories, which conduct business as Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, are
among the leading esoteric clinical testing laboratories in the world. In 1998, our esoteric testing laboratory in
San Juan Capistrano, California, was the first clinical laboratory in North America to achieve International
Organization for Standardization, or ISO, 9001 certification. Our esoteric testing laboratory in Chantilly, Virginia
enables us to provide full esoteric testing services on the east coast. Our Focus Diagnostics laboratory, which is
based in Cypress, California, is one of the leading providers of infectious and immunologic disease testing in the
world. Our esoteric testing laboratories perform hundreds of esoteric tests that are not routinely performed by our
regional laboratories. These esoteric tests are generally in the following fields:
•endocrinology and metabolism (the study of glands, their hormone secretions and their effects on body
growth and metabolism);
•genetics (the study of chromosomes, genes and their protein products and effects);
•hematology (the study of blood and bone marrow cells) and coagulation (the process of blood clotting);
•immunogenetics and human leukocyte antigens (HLA) (solid organ and bone marrow transplantation;
eligibility for vaccines and immunotherapy);
•immunology (the study of the immune system including antibodies, immune system cells and their effects
and autoimmune diseases);
•microbiology and infectious diseases (the study of microscopic forms of life including parasites, bacteria,
viruses, fungi and other infectious agents);
•oncology (the study of abnormal cell growth including benign tumors and cancer);
•serology (a science dealing with body fluids and their analysis, including antibodies, proteins and other
characteristics); and
•toxicology (the study of chemicals and drugs and their effects on the body’s metabolism).
New Test Introductions
We intend to build upon our reputation as a leading innovator in the clinical laboratory industry by
continuing to introduce new diagnostic tests. As the industry leader with the largest and broadest laboratory
network and the leading provider of esoteric testing, we believe that we are the best partner for developers of
new technology and tests to introduce their products to the marketplace.
We continue to be a leading innovator in the industry, through tests that we developed at Quest Diagnostics
Nichols Institute, the largest provider of molecular diagnostic testing in the United States, and Focus Diagnostics,
a leading provider of infectious and immunologic disease testing, as well as through relationships with technology
developers. We believe that we are one of the leaders in transferring technical innovations to the market through
our relationships with the academic community and pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms, as well as through
collaborations with emerging medical technology companies that develop and commercialize novel diagnostics,
pharmaceutical and device technologies.
We focus our resources on key disease states and technologies that will help doctors care for their patients
through better screening, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment choice and monitoring. With these priorities in mind,
during 2006, we introduced over 80 new and improved assays and services, principally in the following areas:
•Oncology–Blood Cancers (Leukemia and Lymphoma). We introduced ten additional tests for leukemia and
lymphoma in our growing family of new plasma-based molecular tests called LeumetaTM. We believe that
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