Partnership to Develop Multiplexed Cancer Diagnostic Assays

A partnership has been established to integrate multicolor fluorescence slides-technology analysis with a fluorescence biomarker-analysis system to provide clinicians with more complete determination of the disease state.

Definiens (Munich, Germany), a health image intelligence company, and Cernostics (Danville, PA, USA), a life sciences firm specializing in advanced cancer diagnostics, announced a partnership to develop a unique multiplexed assay tool for the diagnosis of cancer. Cernostics will apply Definiens' image analysis technology to develop new molecular diagnostic tests for the treatment of a variety of cancer types.

Cernostics is using Definiens Tissue Studio to develop its cancer diagnostic test, which relies on highly multiplexed panels of fluorescence biomarkers, with the final goal to deploy the solution in the clinical routine. Definiens Tissue Studio enables pathologists to analyze cancers on the cellular and subcellular level. Rapid and accurate quantification of cancer characteristics will provide the Cernostics research team with data on which to build and deploy cancer diagnostic tests.

Unlike some approaches that rely on single-biomarker expression, Cernostics takes a systems approach to tumor analysis, evaluating immune, stromal, stem cell and tumor biomarkers on a single slide while preserving tissue structure. This can help clinicians better understand disease subtypes and help them choose the course of treatment most suited to each patient's disease state.

"The partnership between Definiens and Cernostics will apply powerful technology to the field of oncology diagnostics,” said Thomas Heydler, CEO of Definiens. "Definiens Tissue Studio is uniquely able to evaluate multiple channels from a single sample, providing accurate data to support clinical decisions and help clinicians apply the best treatment for each patient.”

"The collaboration with Definiens will enable Cernostics to accelerate development of its pipeline of systems biology-based diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive tests. Cernostics is in a unique position to provide unsurpassed solutions for tissue analysis and cancer diagnosis and the well validated Definiens software is a key component for extracting precise image measurements,” said Rebecca Critchley-Thorne, PhD, director of biomarker and diagnostic development of Cernostics.

To support its development of oncology diagnostic technology, Cernostics is working closely with Geisinger Health System, a US$2.3 billion integrated health services organization based in Pennsylvania. Supported by Geisinger, Cernostics gains access to a clinical setting on which to create and validate pathology solutions, including a large tumor bank linked to well-annotated, deep, and longitudinal clinical information.

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