Roche Diagnostics Korea outlines vision for digital transformation in aging society
Roche Diagnostics Korea presented its vision for addressing Korea’s aging society through the digital transformation of diagnostic platforms. At a press conference held at COEX in Seoul, the company outlined its commitment to enhancing healthcare efficiency and innovation under the theme, “The Future of Healthcare and Innovation through Diagnostic Testing.”
Mike Yun, Roche Diagnostics Korea’s Head of Digital Insights, highlighted the importance of intelligent, AI-driven laboratories in managing the rising demands on healthcare systems brought on by an aging population.
“The cost burden on healthcare systems is growing, and intelligent, digitally enabled labs are essential to meeting this challenge,” Yun stated. Global healthcare professionals report over 90 percent satisfaction with Roche’s NAVIFY platform, a comprehensive digital diagnostic solution, he added.
The NAVIFY solution encompasses a range of digital tools, including software for multidisciplinary cancer treatment, lab management, monitoring, and data management. The system has also integrated the software of Korean companies such as Lunit and Deepbio.
According to Yun, equipping labs with digital tools can improve operational efficiency, enhance data security, and support data-driven insights for treatment planning.
According to Yun Yeo-min, Director of Scientific Affairs of the Korean Society for Laboratory, emphasized the need for digital transformation across diagnostic testing. He pointed to the role of artificial intelligence in supporting health monitoring and stressed that a comprehensive digital transition—from early disease detection to treatment planning—is essential.
Professor Yun also discussed the challenges of data integration across healthcare institutions, noting the importance of policy support and modern diagnostic equipment. “Integrating health data from various institutions remains challenging, and policy-level support is needed to address this,” he said.
Challenges of data standardization
A major issue raised during the event was the lack of standardization across diagnostic test results from different manufacturers.
Professor Yoon explained that diagnostic testing for acute chest pain, for example, often involves troponin level testing to assess heart disease risk. However, variations in threshold values across manufacturers, such as Roche and Siemens, can complicate the establishment of universal treatment guidelines.
“Diagnostic test results form the basis for treatment decisions, so having standardized values is critical,” Professor Yun said. “While blood glucose tests for diabetes have been standardized, allowing for consistent results across devices, troponin levels in cardiac care are not yet standardized. Standardization in this area would support the development of universal treatment guidelines.”
In response, Korea Roche Diagnostics emphasized its commitment to improving digital infrastructure and operational efficiency to support diagnostic labs worldwide.
Kit Tang, general manager of Korea Roche Diagnostics, noted that as Korea approaches a super-aged society, the role of diagnostic data in providing efficient care will become increasingly important.
“We aim to contribute to the improvement of healthcare efficiency and patient outcomes through innovative diagnostic solutions,” Tang said.