OncoMethylome's Biomarkers Demonstrate Good Performance in Detecting
Colorectal Cancer in Blood
Liege (Belgium) - November 19, 2007, 8:00am CET - OncoMethylome
Sciences (Euronext Brussels: ONCOB, Euronext Amsterdam: ONCOA)
announced positive clinical results from its colorectal cancer
screening program. Interim data from clinical trials demonstrated
promising performance characteristics for OncoMethylome's blood-based
colorectal cancer screening test.
The new clinical trial data, which were co-authored with
OncoMethylome's collaborators from Maastricht University and
presented at the AACR Advances in Colon Cancer Research conference,
showed that a panel of methylation markers detected colorectal cancer
in blood samples collected from trial participants with 74%
sensitivity and 92% specificity. In other words, the blood test
correctly detected 74% of colon cancers, and it correctly identified,
as non-cancerous, 92% of controls collected from age-appropriate
people. The test's performance remained high, above 70% sensitivity,
even when detecting early stage cancer.
"We are very proud of the progress we have made with our colorectal
cancer program this year. Both our stool and blood screening tests
showed very promising performance in recently published clinical
trials. While our stool test remains the more accurate of the two,
our blood test has the advantage of being easier to administer. We
are pleased with the initial performance of our markers in blood
samples and will now proceed with optimizing the blood test. Our
intention is to provide both of these valuable tests to the medical
community", commented Herman Spolders, Chief Executive Officer of
OncoMethylome. "Currently fewer than 50% of age-appropriate people
get screened for colorectal cancer, largely due to a lack of
non-invasive screening tests that are convenient and accurate. Our
simple, yet accurate, stool and blood tests have the potential to
fill this missing void."
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death
in the US and Europe with over 250,000 deaths annually. Colorectal
cancer develops slowly over years but often without symptoms during
its early stages. Detected early, however, colorectal cancer is
highly treatable. These characteristics highlight the need for
screening age-appropriate, asymptomatic individuals for colorectal
cancer. Therefore, the goal of OncoMethylome's colorectal cancer
program is to develop accurate, non-invasive, and user-friendly tests
that are appropriate for population screening.
The published data is based on blood collected from the first 317
participants in ongoing clinical trials that are designed to validate
OncoMethylome's stool and blood tests for colorectal cancer.
To download this press release as a PDF, click here: Press Release
PDF
To download clinical data presented at the AACR Advances in Colon
Cancer Research conference, click here: Clinical Data PDF
About Colorectal Cancer
Colorectal cancer is a very common illness with more than 900,000 new
cases and 500,000 deaths recorded worldwide each year. Colorectal
cancer is best treatable if diagnosed early; however, today, fewer
than 40% of colorectal cancers are detected early. US Department of
Health estimates that 50 to 60 percent of deaths from colorectal
cancer could be prevented if everyone above the age of 50 were
screened regularly. In Europe and US, there are over 200 million
people over the age of 50 who would benefit from regular screening
for colorectal cancer. OncoMethylome is developing sensitive and
non-invasive stool and blood screening tests for this disease.
About Methylation and Methylation Markers
Methylation is a natural control mechanism that regulates gene
expression in DNA. Abnormal methylation of certain genes, such as
tumor suppressor genes, can silence gene expression and is associated
with cancer development. Genes, whose methylation is linked to
cancer, are called methylation markers. OncoMethylome owns
proprietary technology that is highly sensitive and capable of
detecting methylation markers, and thereby cancer, even in early
stages of cancer development. In the case of colorectal cancer, this
technology identifies methylation markers that have been shown to be
associated with colorectal cancer.
About OncoMethylome Sciences
OncoMethylome Sciences (Euronext Brussels: ONCOB; Euronext Amsterdam:
ONCOA) is a molecular diagnostics company developing gene methylation
tests to assist physicians in effectively detecting and treating
cancer. Specifically, the company's tests are designed to help the
physician (i) accurately detect cancer in early stages of cancer
development, (ii) predict a patient's response to drug therapy, and
(iii) predict the likelihood of cancer recurrence.
OncoMethylome boasts a broad product development pipeline consisting
of ten products and a solid partnering record. The company
collaborates with leading international molecular oncology research
centers, such as The Johns Hopkins University, and has a number of
commercial and collaborative partnerships with Veridex LLC, a Johnson
& Johnson company, Schering-Plough Corp., Millipore Corporation's
BioScience Division, and EXACT Sciences Corp. OncoMethylome's
products are based on methylation technology invented by Johns
Hopkins University (USA).
Established in January 2003, OncoMethylome has offices in Liege and
Leuven (Belgium), in Durham, NC (USA), and in Amsterdam (the
Netherlands).
For more information please contact:
Lucija Turcinov
Tel. +32-479-801-902
Lucija.Turcinov@oncomethylome.com
or visit: www.oncomethylome.com
