GenomeDx's Decipher Platform Identifies Gene Expression Associated with Resistance to Chemotherapy Treatment in Bladder Cancer

SAN DIEGO, May 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- GenomeDx Biosciences today announced that its Decipher® platform was used to evaluate molecular subtypes associated with resistance to platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), supporting the potential use of a genomic signature to guide patient therapy. The study was presented at the American Urological Association (AUA) 2016 Annual Meeting by GenomeDx collaborators from the Vancouver Prostate Center. Roland Seiler, M.D., a urologic oncology fellow at the University of British Columbia, led a podium presentation titled, "Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Bladder Cancer: p53-ness is Associated with Chemo-Resistance and Unfavorable Outcome," which can be found on the AUA 2016 website.

In the multi-center study, tissue obtained before NAC was analyzed from 203 patients, and matching post-NAC radical cystectomy tissue was available in 70 patients. The Decipher platform evaluated how patients fitting into three molecular subtypes, proposed previously by researchers at MD Anderson, responded to NAC. Individuals with tumors falling into the p53-like molecular subtype displayed the worst prognosis with NAC therapy. Findings have the potential to be used in the development of prognostic signatures to guide treatment of prostate cancer.

"We estimate that almost 34,000 bladder cancer patients every year are eligible for bladder removal to treat their disease," said Doug Dolginow, M.D., chief executive officer of GenomeDx. "We believe our genomic test for bladder cancer, being developed in collaboration with the urologic oncology community through Decipher GRID®, will facilitate better decision-making at different stages of the disease. This includes determining whether a patient with advanced disease should undergo chemotherapy first or be prioritized to immediate surgery, thereby avoiding toxic and costly chemotherapy regimens that are unlikely to provide any additional benefit over surgery alone."

The American Cancer Society estimates that nearly 77,000 patients will be diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2016 in the United States alone. It is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer in men and the twelfth in women and is projected in 2016 to account for over 16,000 deaths in the United States.  Platinum-based chemotherapy treatment before or after surgery is the standard of care for patients with high grade and muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Suboptimal response rates to chemotherapy and the associated burden of treatment underscore the need to develop new tools to help identify patients who will benefit most from treatment and spare those who will not benefit from the toxicity of chemotherapy.

About Decipher® Prostate Cancer Classifier Tests
Our Decipher prostate cancer classifier tests are currently comprised of Decipher Biopsy and Decipher Post-Op. These commercially available genomic tests provide an assessment of tumor aggressiveness based on the patient's unique genomic profile. Decipher Biopsy is indicated for men after biopsy diagnosis and Decipher Post-Op is indicated for men after prostate removal surgery. The Decipher tests are used by physicians to stratify patients into more accurate risk groups to better determine which patients will likely benefit from additional treatment and which will not, thereby enabling improved decision-making and helping low-risk patients avoid unnecessary treatments that have serious adverse side effects and result in unnecessary costs to the healthcare system. Studies of thousands of patients from leading cancer centers, published in multiple peer-reviewed journals, demonstrate that the Decipher tests can more accurately predict disease aggressiveness than traditional clinical measures, such as PSA and Gleason score. Decipher Post-Op is covered by Medicare and by a number of private payors and preferred provider organizations representing, together with Medicare, about 70% of the approximately 66 million adult men in the United States age 40 or older who are at increased risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Learn more at www.DecipherTest.com

About Decipher GRID®
Our Decipher Genomics Resource Information Database (Decipher GRID) is a genomic expression database that provides a foundation for open and interactive research collaboration and knowledge creation. Decipher GRID is a rapidly growing database that contains genomic profiles of thousands of patient tumors, and constitutes what we believe to be the world's largest shared, clinically-annotated genomic expression database in urologic cancer as well as one of the world's largest global RNA expression databases utilizing cloud-based analytics. We believe Decipher GRID gives rise to new opportunities for information technology-enabled genomic solutions and enables us to more rapidly discover, develop, commercialize and drive the adoption of our existing and new genomic tests. Through Decipher GRID, GenomeDx is building a suite of genomic tests in urologic cancer that we believe will allow us to achieve our goals of reducing costs to the healthcare system and improving patient lives, from screening through late-stage therapy.    

Learn more at www.DecipherGRID.com

About GenomeDx Biosciences
GenomeDx Biosciences uses the power of collaborative genomics to transform the management and treatment of cancer patients. GenomeDx has built Decipher GRID, a large genomics database in urologic cancer that provides a foundation for open and interactive research collaboration and knowledge creation. Using Decipher GRID to analyze vast amounts of genomic data, GenomeDx develops and commercializes proprietary clinical tests that are intended to provide more accurate and useful diagnostic information than both traditional diagnostic tools and existing genomic tests. GenomeDx's Decipher Biopsy and Decipher Post-Op are commercially available prostate cancer genomic tests that provide an assessment of tumor aggressiveness based on a patient's unique genomic profile. GenomeDx is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia and has offices in San Diego, California.

Learn more at www.GenomeDx.com

Media Contact:
Ian Stone
Canale Communications
619-849-5388
[email protected]

SOURCE GenomeDx Biosciences

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