Nucleix Announces Publication of Non-Invasive Bladder Cancer Recurrence Detection Study Showing Best-in-Class Performance
- Results of the European multi-center study of Bladder EpiCheck™ urine test, supporting reduction of invasive procedures, were published in the European Urology Oncology journal
REHOVOT, Israel, July 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Nucleix Ltd., a leading cancer detection and screening company, announced today that the multi-center European study results with its Bladder EpiCheck™ urine test for the detection of bladder cancer recurrence, were published in the European Urology Oncology journal1. The results demonstrate best-in-class performance of Bladder EpiCheck and support the reduction of follow-up invasive procedures.
The multi-center, single-arm, prospective, double-blind clinical study was performed in five leading urology centers in Europe, on 440 patients who were recruited in their first year of follow-up. The study compared the results of Bladder EpiCheck to the current gold standard follow-up sequence (cystoscopy, cytology and pathology verification). Bladder EpiCheck demonstrated a clinically relevant and high negative predictive value (NPV), with NPV of 99.3% and sensitivity of 91.7% (both excluding patients with low-grade tumors) and specificity of 88%.
"High NPV in high grade cancers is essential for the applicability of a urine test in clinical decision making. An NPV of 99.3% means that a patient with a negative Bladder EpiCheck result is free of high-grade cancer in 99.3% of the cases. Therefore, allowing us to avoid cystoscopies, which are unpleasant invasive procedures," commented Prof. Fred Witjes, Radboud UMC in Nijmegen, the Netherlands and the principal investigator of the study. "Bladder cancer is a highly recurring disease and the most expensive cancer per a patient's lifetime. Follow-up cystoscopies are required up to four times a year in the first years, reducing gradually to an annual cystoscopy for the lifetime of a patient. Bladder EpiCheck provides the best results in urine tests for bladder cancer follow-up, and it is an important tool that can help reduce those follow-up cystoscopies."
Bladder EpiCheck is a CE approved urine test for monitoring of bladder cancer that was clinically validated in several independent cohorts in leading hospitals and labs throughout Europe. Bladder EpiCheck has shown in clinical trials best performance of a non-invasive tool in detection of bladder cancer recurrence when compared to the invasive standard-of-care. The test is objective, operator independent and requires standard laboratory equipment. Bladder EpiCheck is based on Nucleix's proprietary molecular biomarker technology, which combines new biochemical assays and sophisticated algorithms. The technology is based on identification and analysis of subtle changes in DNA methylation patterns, a powerful tool for distinguishing between cancer and healthy cells and thus for detection of tumors in the body.
"We are very pleased with the impressive results of our robust, multi-center, European Bladder EpiCheck trial, and with the publication of the data in the prestigious European Urology Oncology journal, providing scientific validation for our Bladder EpiCheck urine test and its underlying technology," stated Opher Shapira, Ph.D., CEO of Nucleix. "Bladder EpiCheck's market penetration looks promising as several leading hospitals and labs in Europe have already began using our kits. In parallel, we are now developing additional assays for the detection of other types of cancers, such as lung and liver cancer."
About Bladder Cancer
Bladder cancer is the 5th highest incidence cancer in the EU, and is characterized with high disease recurrence rate requiring a frequent follow-up schedule. The standard follow-up includes cystoscopy- a procedure of inserting a tube with a camera through the opening of the urethra into the urinary bladder to visually inspect for the presence of cancer. Bladder cancer is the most expensive cancer to treat on a per patient basis because of around 70% recurrence rate, costing the EU approximately €5 Billion per year.
About Nucleix
Nucleix Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets innovative, non-invasive, molecular cancer diagnostic tests. Its highly sensitive and specific tests are based on identification of subtle changes in methylation patterns. Nucleix's technology is based on a combination of a new biochemical assay in conjunction with sophisticated algorithms. The Company's pipeline includes CE Mark Bladder EpiCheck, for the non-invasive detection of bladder cancer based on a urine test; Lung EpiCheck, a screening diagnostic blood test for early detection of lung cancer; Liver EpiCheck, a blood test for liver cancer detection in patients with cirrhosis; and Pan Cancer EpiCheck, a molecular diagnostic tool for early detection of multiple cancer types in blood samples, all based on Nucleix's proprietary and innovative epigenetic platforms. Investors in the Company include OrbiMed and other leading investors. Please visit www.nucleix.com
1 Witjes JA, et al. Performance of the Bladder EpiCheckTM Methylation Test for Patients Under Surveillance for Non–muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer: Results of a Multicenter, Prospective, Blinded Clinical Trial. Eur Urol Oncol (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euo.2018.06.011
Company Contact:
Arnon Horev
Director of Product Marketing
Nucleix Ltd.
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Media Contact:
Tsipi Haitovsky
Global Media Liaison
Nucleix Ltd.
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SOURCE Nucleix
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