Personalised Colorectal Cancer Treatment Prognosis - Isis Project No 3252
A series of new single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genetic markers for use as biomarkers for assessment of colorectal cancer risk and potential response to therapy, which would enable clinicians to make bespoke treatment decisions.
Marketing Opportunity
According to 2005 worldwide estimates, there are more than one million new diagnoses of colorectal cancer each year and over 500,000 deaths annually. The high cost of new cancer therapies, and patients’ highly variable response to cancer therapies have led to a drive towards the development of tools and biomarkers for diagnostic and prognostic purposes to enable a more personalised approach to treatment.
There has been a significant growth in the gene-based in vitro diagnostic market in recent years which is set to continue as technological advances make the screening technology cheaper and more accessible, and new expensive cancer treatments coming through the pipeline are often only acceptable if accompanied by screening methods to ensure only patients with a good chance of responding are given these therapies.
The Oxford Invention
Oxford researchers in the Clinical Pharmacology Department have identified a series of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) region of the genome, the presence or absence of which could give an indication of a colorectal cancer patient’s prognosis and/or predicted response to therapy. By combining these biomarkers with other risk factors, clinicians can assess a colorectal cancer patient’s risk profile, and make an informed decision regarding treatment regimen. This will prevent either under-treating a patient with higher risk of developing aggressive disease or over-treating patients with lower risk of developing aggressive disease.
The Oxford invention can potentially be used as a stand-alone in vitro diagnostic test or in combination with other biomarkers in existing gene-based tests.
Patent Status
The Oxford invention is the subject of an international patent application, and Isis would like to talk to companies interested in developing this commercial opportunity. Please contact the Isis Project Manager to discuss this further.
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