Preterm birth is one of the leading causes of infant mortality. Approximately 10% of babies born in the U.S. in 2018 were born before 37 weeks gestation, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC also reports that the risk of preterm birth in 2016…

Biodesix said it will partner with Thermo Fisher Scientific to develop a next-generation sequencing (NGS) assay for use as a blood-based diagnostic solution for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Biodesix plans to obtain FDA premarket approval for the diagnostic by using Thermo Fisher’s Ion Torrent Oncomine Pan-Cancer Cell-Free Assay…

By Cindy Perettie, CEO, Foundation Medicine The way ASCO started for me this year set the scene for what was an inspiring and fascinating weekend. Early on Friday morning, before most people’s ASCOs had started, I sat in a meeting room in the conference center watching it slowly fill to…

Biocept said today it will partner with Providence St. Joseph Health, Southern California and its wholly-owned affiliates—Providence Saint John’s Health Center and the John Wayne Cancer Institute—on a study designed to validate the use of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) as a specimen type with Biocept's Target Selector liquid biopsy platform in…

Foundation Medicine plans to provide comprehensive genomic profiling for eligible veterans living with advanced cancer under a five-year, $111.5 million contract awarded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The contract, awarded under the Veterans Affairs National Precision Oncology Program (NPOP), encompasses all of Foundation Medicine’s available tests—including FoundationOne CDx…

Molecular diagnostics company Biocept has launched the first in what will be a series of liquid biopsy test kits for cancer with the intention of increasing the use of its Target Selector ctDNA testing platform. The first kit, available for research-use-only (RUO), is for the detection of the EGFR oncogene…

Biocept will apply Prognos’ artificial intelligence (AI) platform toward the use of its clinical laboratory diagnostics for precision oncology, through a collaboration whose value was not disclosed. The companies have signed a software license and laboratory data supply agreement, through which Biocept agreed to supply de-identified data from its liquid…

Biocartis will commercialize its Idylla molecular diagnostics platform in mainland China through a 50-50 joint venture with Guangzhou Wondfo Biotech, the companies said today. Biocartis and Wondfo said they have agreed to invest a total of €14 million ($16.2 million) of equity funding over several tranches in the joint venture,…

Signaling growing interest in personalized oncology treatments as well as diagnostics, Roche plans a $2.4 billion acquisition that will expand its majority stake in Foundation Medicine into full ownership of the cancer-focused molecular diagnostics developer. Under the deal, Roche and Foundation Medicine said, they plan to combine their expertise in…

Victory often depends on good counterintelligence—and the war on cancer is no exception. Scientists have proven the value of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and circulating tumor cells as informants, and the number of publications starring these double agents has rocketed skyward over the past several years. While “liquid biopsies” have…

Liquid biopsy developer Angle said it has enrolled the first patient for its ANG-002 clinical study, designed to assess its Parsortix PC1 system in patients with metastatic breast cancer. The clinical study (NCT03427450) is intended to support FDA clearance of Parsortix PC1 as an in vitro diagnostic device. Angle says…

Patient-centric genomics company DxTerity announced it will collaborate with California-based City or Hope Medical Center on the clinical development of a blood test intended to predict whether patients about to undergo radiation therapy for cancer are likely to benefit from the treatment. The test will also seek to provide information…

The more diverse the digestive tract bacteria, the slower the progression of metastatic melanoma in patients treated with immunotherapy, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported today. At the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, the researchers presented results from a…

Biocept said today it has granted Oregon Health & Sciences University (OHSU) rights to commercially offer the molecular diagnostics developer’s Target Selector™ liquid biopsy testing services exclusively throughout Oregon. In addition, OHSU can use Biocept’s Target Selector assays in-house, and serve as a secondary laboratory for Biocept's research and testing…

It is likely one of the longest periods of foreshadowing in science. In 1869, Australian physician Thomas R. Ashworth first observed circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in one of his patients and suggested the treasure trove of information they might contain. “Cells identical with those of the cancer itself being seen in…