Epigenomics archieves key milestone in developement of prostate cancer classification test

Company Discovers Biomarkers for Prostate Cancer Aggressiveness

13-Jan-2005

Epigenomics AG announced the successful identification of a set of DNA methylation biomarkers that closely correlate with prostate cancer aggressiveness. Epigenomics has now successfully identified biomarkers for all five initial products in its diagnostic collaboration with Roche Diagnostics. Meeting this milestone triggered an undisclosed milestone payment to Epigenomics from Roche Diagnostics.

Using proprietary technologies, Epigenomics has discovered a panel of DNA methylation markers that closely correlate with the Gleason score in samples from prostatectomy (surgically removal of the prostate) patients. The Gleason score is currently the most widely used indicator of prognosis in prostate cancer. These candidate markers also correlate with the early prostate specific antigen (PSA) relapse after radical prostatectomy, even in patients with mid-range Gleason. In the future this could mean that those patients that have undergone a prostatectomy could be more effectively monitored for disease relapse.

The candidate biomarkers will now be incorporated into assays and validated against a large number of clinical tissue samples. Epigenomics' prostate cancer molecular classification project is focused on developing a test that will be used following prostate biopsy to differentiate between aggressive and non-aggressive prostate cancer. Current techniques used to stratify prostate cancer patients and determine treatment options have only limited success because they are subjective and vary among individual pathology laboratories.

https://www.bionity.com/en/news/42518/epigenomics-archieves-key-milestone-in-developement-of-prostate-cancer-classification-test.html