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bioTheranostics and Massachusetts General Hospital Collaborate in Molecular Cancer Profiling Study
Collaboration seeks to develop and commercialize tumor
biomarkers for improved drug response prediction in cancer
therapy
Carlsbad, CA May 17, 2006 – bioTheranostics, a leader in molecular cancer profiling and formerly known
as Arcturus Bioscience, Inc., announced today that it has entered
into a major research collaboration with the Massachusetts
General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center to identify molecular
profiles of multiple types of cancer for the development of
diagnostic technologies and tests in the field of cancer drug
response prediction.
Over the next two years, teams at MGH and
bioTheranostics will conduct a broad molecular profiling program to
determine genes, gene signatures and polymorphisms that correlate
with response to specific therapeutic agents in a wide range
of different cancers. The initiative aims to identify and commercialize tumor biomarkers
that predict which patients may respond to targeted drugs. MGH and bioTheranostics will
perform gene sequencing and gene expression analysis in a large number of cancers.
The project results will not only provide valuable information to help identify
patients likely to respond to a certain cancer drug, but also provide guidance
with regard to a broader range of cancer types likely responding to an established
drug.
Daniel A. Haber, MD, PhD, and Jeff Settleman,
PhD, of MGH have extensive experience in the identification
of genetic markers associated with drug response. Most recently,
they reported the identification of a gene mutation that appears
to identify those lung cancer patients who will likely respond
to the cancer drug Iressa® 1.
Mark Erlander, Ph.D. and Xiao-Jun Ma, Ph.D.,
of bioTheranostics have developed the company’s
Molecular Cancer Identification (MCID) technology, which has been licensed to
clinical laboratory partners in the US and Europe.
"The MGH Cancer Center is a world
leading medical research center, and we are pleased to be
collaborating with them in a program that may result in the
development of molecular diagnostic tests for drug response
prediction in cancer," said Antonius Schuh, Ph.D., Chief
Executive Officer of bioTheranostics. "Transforming the
molecular basis of cancer into diagnostic technologies with
proven clinical utility is the core focus for bioTheranostics. Our
molecular cancer identification (MCID) and breast cancer
profiling (BCP) technologies are impressive achievements
in this space.
"Our goal is the development of a rational basis for the selection of a
specific drug regimen in a given patient," said Dr. Haber, who is the director
of the MGH Cancer Center. "We are hopeful that this collaboration will generate
technologies of relevant molecular diagnostic tests for predicting what therapy
is best suited for specific patients."
About bioTheranostics
bioTheranostics, formerly Arcturus Bioscience, Inc., is
focused on developing and commercializing diagnostic
technologies for molecular cancer profiling. bioTheranostics
leverages its technological leadership position in the
analysis of cancer biopsies and proprietary bioinformatic
methodologies to discover and commercialize molecular
diagnostic products. The molecular diagnostic
market segment of the diagnostic market is projected
to grow at a compound annual growth rate of greater than
25% over the next decade and bioTheranostics is targeting this
market opportunity with three first-in-class molecular
cancer diagnostic technologies: Molecular Cancer Identification
(MCID), Breast Cancer Profiling (BCP) and Drug Response
Profiling (DRP). bioTheranostics estimates that the addressable
U.S. market for its products and services is approximately
$3 billion and has already licensed its MCID and BCP
technologies for specific clinical indications and for
defined detection platforms to diagnostic laboratories
in the U.S. and Europe in order drive early market penetration
and acceptance. bioTheranostics has recently relocated
its headquarters from Mountain View, California to Carlsbad,
California. Please visit the bioTheranostics website at http://www.biotheranostics.com for
more information.
About Massachusetts General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is
the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard
Medical School. Its dedication to the treatment of cancer
dates back to 1925, when the MGH opened the nation’s
first tumor clinic. Over the decades, the hospital
has become widely known for its leadership in cancer
surgery and radiation therapy. The MGH conducts the largest
hospital-based research program in the United States,
with an annual research budget of nearly $500 million
and major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research,
cancer, cutaneous biology, medical imaging, neurodegenerative
disorders, transplantation biology and photomedicine.
In 1994, MGH and Brigham and Women's Hospital joined
to form Partners HealthCare, an integrated health care
delivery system.
1 IRESSA® is a trade
mark of the AstraZeneca group of companies.
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