New markers to be developed for use with CA125II.(ovarian tumor markers)

2002 SEP 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc., (FDI), a leading oncology diagnostics company, announced that it has acquired the rights from Pacific Northwest Research Institute (PNRI) to develop two newly discovered ovarian tumor markers, mesothelin, and HE4.

Preclinical research has shown that mesothelin and HE4 augment the diagnostic potential of FDI's serum-based assay, CA125II, which is currently the standard of care for management of ovarian cancer. Based on research findings, combining the three ovarian cancer tumor markers may result in dramatically improved diagnostic performance, particularly for the detection of early-stage disease.

"The development of a complementary assay for use with CA125II for improved use in early detection of ovarian cancer represents another step forward in the standard of care," said Aris Petropoulos, president and chief operating officer of FDI. "Successfully developing these tumor markers will create a useful tool for physicians to use in the early detection of ovarian cancer and will have a tremendous impact in saving women's lives."

Serum-based assays are useful in the clinical setting due to their cost-effectiveness and ease-of-use. Ovarian cancer researchers continue to work on improving the sensitivity and specificity of serum-based markers, with the goal of achieving the highest level of diagnostic accuracy possible. Recent studies suggest that combining several select tumor markers, possibly in a multiplex mode, could lead to a more sensitive and specific assay for the early detection of ovarian cancer.

While each marker has significant serum-detection abilities, the combination of these three markers represents a unique synergy that has the potential to increase the likelihood that ovarian cancer is ...