GCCL Highlights the Rise of “K-Lab,” Sets Its Sights Beyond Korea to the Global Stage

| Interview | Choi Yu-hwa, Head of Business Operations, GCCL

Korea’s No.1 Clinical Sample Analysis Provider Joins KoNECT Korean Delegation
“More Efficiently Positioned Than Singapore… Aiming to Become Asia’s Leading Lab”

[Berlin | ESMO 2025 – Reported by Byung-woo Hwang] GCCL, a leading Korean clinical sample analysis company, showcased its competitiveness on the global stage at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO 2025).

Participating as part of the Korean delegation organized by the Korea National Enterprise for Clinical Trials (KoNECT), GCCL is actively expanding its presence beyond the domestic market and into international territories.

“One of the most memorable reactions we heard at ESMO 2025 was, ‘We didn’t know there was such a high-level analytical lab in Korea,’” said Choi Yu-hwa, Head of Business Operations at GCCL, in an interview with DailyPharm. “We wanted to demonstrate that global clinical sample analysis can be performed not only in Singapore or Europe, but also in Korea.”

“Korea’s Leading Clinical Sample Analysis Lab Begins Its Global Challenge”

▲ Choi Yu-hwa, Head of Business Operations, GCCL

GCCL is a specialized clinical sample analysis company under the Green Cross Holdings group and currently holds the No.1 market share in Korea’s clinical sample analysis sector.

The company provides PK (pharmacokinetics), PD (pharmacodynamics), ADA, biomarker analysis, and central laboratory services across all phases of clinical trials, from Phase 1 through Phase 4.

In particular, GCCL operates a dedicated bioanalytical laboratory, supporting early-phase trials with drug concentration and metabolism data, and late-phase trials with large-scale quantitative and qualitative patient data management. All analytical outputs are delivered in compliance with global regulatory standards.

“Within Korea, GCCL is unquestionably the leading lab CRO in terms of technology, infrastructure, and talent,” Choi said. “Now, our goal is to expand into overseas sample analysis and establish GCCL as a central player in global clinical trials.”

The company has already been building global awareness through continuous participation in major international conferences, including BIO Europe, ASCO, and BIO USA.

“Earlier this year, we often heard people ask, ‘Why did you come all the way from Korea?’” Choi noted. “Now, as we meet the same industry professionals repeatedly at different events, more people recognize GCCL and are familiar with our capabilities.”

Choi identified GCCL’s core strengths as technical expertise, geopolitical positioning, and experience gained during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Korea is known for its highly skilled technicians and exceptional technical precision,” she explained. “In clinical sample analysis, this level of craftsmanship directly translates into quality. During the COVID-19 pandemic, GCCL handled more than 30% of the sample analysis for government- and industry-led vaccine and therapeutic development projects, which significantly strengthened our R&D-driven analytical capabilities.”

She also highlighted Korea’s strategic geographic location as a key advantage.

“Korea is even more efficient than Singapore in terms of logistics,” Choi said. “It is ideally positioned as a hub connecting samples from Europe and North America to Asia.”

Looking ahead, Choi emphasized GCCL’s long-term vision. “Our immediate goal is to establish ourselves as Asia’s representative lab CRO, and in the long run, to expand into the U.S. and European markets,” she said. “We will continue to prove that Korea is home to world-class clinical sample analysis laboratories.”

Source: DailyPharm, reported by Byung-woo Hwang (https://www.dailypharm.com/Users/News/NewsView.html?ID=327934&REFERER=NP)

*This article is a direct translation of an original Korean-language article prepared by GCCL.