Canary Foundation Announces New Partnerships

SAN JOSE, Calif., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Canary Foundation has engaged in six new partnerships in prostate, never-smoker lung, and ovarian cancer research. The partnerships highlight Canary's commitment to collaboration and innovation in the hope of identifying and isolating cancer at its earliest, most curable stage.

In prostate cancer research, the Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) P.I. Dr. Raymond Lance has become a partner in the Prostate Active Surveillance Study (PASS). PASS aims to identify biomarkers of aggressive forms of prostate cancer. EVMS monitors a number of African Americans who have chosen active surveillance to manage their prostate cancer. This addition boosts the number of patients on the study and also increases the diversity of the patient population. Likewise, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center of Harvard University Medical School under the leadership of Dr. Martin Sanda, and University of Michigan under the direction of Dr. John Wei are adding additional numbers to the Prostate Active Surveillance Study.

In never-smoker lung cancer analysis, the Tianjin Lung Cancer Institute of Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, China under the leadership of Dr. Qinghua Zhou has joined a project that is co-funded by Canary Foundation and the Early Detection Research Network (EDRN). The Tianjin group will support sequencing of 20 lung cancer cell lines that Canary and EDRN investigators are analyzing to discover biomarkers of lung cancer among people who have never smoked. Sequencing and sequence analysis will be conducted by the Shanghai Bio Corporation and the Chinese National Human Genome Center in Shanghai.

For ovarian cancer early detection, Canary is funding two of the four clinics participating in the Novel Markers Screening Trial -- City of Hope (Duarte, California) and Stanford University -- to test a screening program consisting of blood tests and ultrasound imaging. Currently, the only FDA-approved blood test for ovarian cancer measures a biomarker called CA125. The Novel Marker Screening Trial incorporates a new blood biomarker, HE4, in addition to CA125, to determine whether a woman should be sent to imaging or surgery.

The Novel Markers Screening Trial will add valuable information to results from other ongoing efficacy trials that do not yet incorporate novel blood biomarkers, thereby guiding our choice of which screening strategies to pursue for clinical implementation. The trial is made possible through joint support from the government, non-profit, and industry sectors. Canary is an integral part of this strategic alignment that will accelerate the translation of research findings into clinical practice.

Canary's partnerships bring together resources so that we can broaden our research programs to a degree not possible otherwise. We are excited to tap into our partners' strong clinical programs, research expertise, and generous support while bringing about new collaborations for early detection of cancer.

About Canary Foundation

Canary Foundation is a non-profit dedicated to the goal of identifying cancer early through a simple blood test and then isolating it with imaging. Since 2004, Canary has raised over $30 million to support early detection research. Its collaborative research programs span multiple disciplines and institutions. One hundred percent of donations go to early detection research activities. For more information, please visit www.canaryfoundation.org.

SOURCE Canary Foundation