DxS extends EGFR license with Genzyme Genetics to include US and Canada
DxS Ltd has expanded its license with Genzyme Genetics, a business unit of Genzyme Corporation, for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) to include the United States and Canada. The license grants DxS the rights to develop and commercialize diagnostic and research products that detect mutations in the EGFR gene for non-small cell lung cancer, and sell them in the United States and Canada.
This builds on a license earlier this year in which Genzyme granted DxS EGFR rights to the world with the exception of North America, Canada, Mexico and Hong Kong. Through an agreement in 2005 with Massachusetts General Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Genzyme holds the exclusive worldwide diagnostic rights for use of the EGFR gene mutations in testing for NSCLC tumors.
EGFR has been identified as an important factor in prescribing effective treatments for non- small cell lung cancer, as patients who have a mutated EGFR gene are far more likely to respond to certain treatments. This was recently highlighted as a result of the IPASS study which compared two cancer treatments, Iressa and Paraplatin. The study showed that patients with a mutated EGFR gene were more likely to respond to treatment.
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