VarSome Clinical alternative · for practicing pathologists, oncology fellows, genetic counselors
VarSome Clinical alternative for pathologists who get reports from multiple vendors
UNMIRI · See the pathologist tool
VarSome and VarSome Clinical do an excellent job at one specific verb: classify a variant. Paste an HGVS, get an ACMG/AMP classification with annotations from 140+ sources including OncoKB, COSMIC, CKB, and ClinVar. Saphetor sells the Clinical tier as a paid CE-IVDR-certified platform to diagnostic labs.
UNMIRI's pathologist tool starts one step earlier — at the cross-vendor PDF or XML report you actually receive — and produces a normalized side-by-side view across Foundation Medicine, Tempus, Caris, Guardant, and other vendors. Different verb. Different fit. Both can be in your toolkit; pick the one that matches the workflow problem you have.
At a glance
| Dimension | VarSome Clinical | UNMIRI |
|---|---|---|
| Primary verb | Classify a variant (paste HGVS → get annotations + ACMG/AMP) | Unify a multi-vendor NGS report (paste vendor PDF → get normalized side-by-side) |
| Best for | Variant scientists, lab directors, individual variant lookup | Pathologists handling reports from 3+ vendors who need one normalized view |
| Knowledge bases used | 140+ sources including OncoKB, COSMIC, CKB (licensed proprietary KBs) | Open sources only: CIViC (CC0), ClinVar, ClinicalTrials.gov, openFDA, CPIC, AMP/ASCO/CAP. License-clean for downstream sharing. |
| Pricing | Free public lookup at varsome.com; VarSome Clinical is paid SaaS to labs | Free for individual clinical use (pathologist beta). Monetized via Year 2-3 pharma sponsorship deals at scale. |
| Specialty fit | Germline + somatic, lab-pathway focused | Somatic oncology first. Pathologist beta requires institutional email. |
| Output | Classification + annotation cards per variant | Normalized cross-vendor report view + AMP/ASCO/CAP tier flags + companion diagnostic + trial pointers |
| Deployment | Cloud SaaS (Switzerland, US, Saudi Arabia) | Web app at app.unmiri.com, US-only data residency, AWS BAA active |
License-clean by design
VarSome integrates 140+ sources, including licensed proprietary knowledge bases (OncoKB, COSMIC, CKB). For institutional use, this often requires the lab to have its own commercial licenses for those KBs. The annotations are valuable; the licensing footprint is real.
UNMIRI takes a different approach: open sources only. CIViC is CC0 public domain, ClinVar is open, ClinicalTrials.gov is public, openFDA is public, CPIC is open, AMP/ASCO/CAP 2017 is the public evidence-tier framework. The schema's evidence.externalLevelsfield is the documented hook for institutions with their own OncoKB or COSMIC license to plug those in under their own licensing — but they're never embedded in UNMIRI's public artifacts. License-clean by design.
When VarSome Clinical is the right pick
- Your workflow is variant-by-variant lookup: paste HGVS, get classification, move on.
- You need OncoKB Levels and COSMIC curated context in your interpretation (and you have the license to use them).
- You're at a CE-IVDR-regulated diagnostic lab and need certified-grade clinical reporting infrastructure.
- Your reports come from a single vendor or your own in-house panel and you don't have the cross-vendor normalization problem.
When UNMIRI is the right pick
- You receive NGS reports from 3+ vendors (Foundation, Tempus, Caris, Guardant, in-house) and you live the cross-vendor normalization pain.
- You want a license-clean output that cites only open sources your institution can share without secondary licensing.
- You're a practicing pathologist or oncology fellow and you want a free tool for individual clinical use, no procurement step.
- You'd rather pay nothing today and accept that monetization comes later via educational sponsorship deals (clearly disclosed) than commit to an annual SaaS subscription.
- You need US-only data residency under an AWS BAA.
Frequently asked questions
- Does UNMIRI integrate OncoKB or COSMIC?
- No, not in any public artifact. OncoKB and COSMIC are licensed proprietary knowledge bases. UNMIRI's evidence.externalLevels field is the documented hook for institutions with their own commercial licenses to plug those in under their own licensing — but the public schema, sample reports, blog posts, and product surfaces all use AMP/ASCO/CAP tiers and identifier-only references (the cosmicId field is identifier-only, license-clean).
- Is the pathologist tool actually free?
- Yes, for individual clinical use. Pathologist beta access requires institutional email. Monetization is planned via Year 2-3 educational sponsorship deals with pharma (clearly disclosed when active). UNMIRI does not sell user data to pharma sponsors and does not share what you upload.
- What if I'm at a CE-IVDR-regulated diagnostic lab?
- VarSome Clinical's CE-IVDR certification matters for regulated diagnostic reporting workflows. UNMIRI is not CE-IVDR certified; it's positioned as a clinical decision support aid, not a CAP/CLIA-validated diagnostic. If your workflow requires CE-IVDR-certified infrastructure, VarSome Clinical fits that need.
- Can I use both?
- Yes. Many pathologists use VarSome for variant-by-variant lookup and use UNMIRI for cross-vendor report unification. Different verb, different workflow. UNMIRI's output cites primary sources you can verify on the source's own site.
Try the pathologist tool
Free for individual clinical use. Pathologist beta requires institutional email — no credit card, no procurement step.