Decipher Biosciences Announces Research Collaboration with Dendreon to Identify Genomic Drivers of Patient Response to Sipuleucel-T

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Decipher Biosciences (formerly GenomeDx), a leader in the field of urologic cancer genomics, today announced a research collaboration with Dendreon Pharmaceuticals, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company and pioneer in the development of immunotherapy, to apply genomic tumor profiling using the Decipher® assay and GRID® software to identify prostate cancer patients on active surveillance who may benefit most from treatment with sipuleucel-T. PROVENGE® (sipuleucel-T) was the first U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved immunotherapy made from a patient's own immune cells.

"We are pleased to work with Dendreon on this important research collaboration, which we believe will help accelerate the discovery and development of genomic solutions to aid in the treatment and management of prostate cancer," said Elai Davicioni, PhD, chief scientific officer of Decipher Biosciences. "Leveraging Decipher, GRID and machine learning to uncover novel predictors of treatment response will help realize our mutual goal of personalizing therapy for patients with prostate cancer."

As part of the agreement, Dendreon will provide Decipher Biosciences with tumor samples from its Phase 3 ProVent trial (NCT03686683), which will evaluate the effectiveness of sipuleucel-T in reducing disease progression in men with prostate cancer on active surveillance. Decipher Biosciences will use its whole transcriptome Decipher assay to assess the biological behavior of a patient's tumor and its GRID software and database to evaluate gene expression signatures that may be associated with sipuleucel-T response.

"More than 50,000 men choose active surveillance every year¹, which includes regular monitoring to ensure the cancer is not growing or spreading, over more serious treatment options that can negatively impact quality of life," said Bruce A. Brown, M.D., chief medical officer at Dendreon. "It is our hypothesis that treating patients on AS with sipuleucel-T immunotherapy will enable more of them to stay in the AS cohort longer, perhaps indefinitely."

About Decipher Cancer Classifier Tests and GRID

Decipher prostate and bladder cancer classifiers are clinical, commercially available oncology tests that provide a genomic assessment of tumor aggressiveness for individual patients. Decipher Biopsy is indicated for men with localized prostate cancer at diagnosis, Decipher RP is indicated for men after prostate removal surgery, and Decipher Bladder is indicated for patients being considered for neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to bladder removal surgery. The Decipher tests are used by physicians to stratify patients into more accurate risk groups than determined by traditional diagnostic tools and to help determine which patients may be more likely to benefit from additional treatment.

The Decipher tests are derived from the Decipher Genomics Resource Information Database (GRID). GRID contains the genomic profiles of tens of thousands of tumors from patients with urological cancers, and is believed by Decipher Biosciences to be the largest shared genomic expression database in urologic cancer as well as one of the world's largest global RNA expression databases using cloud-based analytics. Each tumor analyzed with a Decipher test adds new data to the GRID database, which is compiled into a Decipher GRID Profile that may reveal additional biological characteristics of the tumor for ongoing research purposes. Going beyond risk stratification, Decipher and GRID make genomic information accessible for researchers to predict responses to therapy better and to guide treatment more precisely. In addition, GRID is a platform for interactive research collaboration, and may enable more rapid discovery, development, commercialization and adoption of new genomic solutions for key clinical questions in cancer treatment.

Learn more at www.deciphertest.com and www.deciphergrid.com

About Decipher Biosciences

Decipher Biosciences  is reimagining the use of genomics as a platform for mass collaboration to improve patient treatment and outcomes through its currently available genomic tests for prostate and bladder cancer as well as potential future tests. Decipher Biosciences is headquartered in San Diego, California.

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¹ Johns Hopkins Medicine. Men with Low-Risk Prostate Cancer in Active Surveillance Program Not Likely to Succumb to the Disease, Study Shows. Accessed 12Feb19. LINK

SOURCE Decipher Biosciences