Clarient Inc, a premier technology and services resource for pathologists, oncologists, and the pharmaceutical industry, launches Mammostrat, a patented test designed to help quantify the likelihood of recurrence of breast cancer following surgery and initial treatment.
The Mammostrat test employs an optimal set of five biomarkers that are able to be identified visually on a patient’s tumor specimen by using a well established technology called immunohistochemistry. Those biomarkers are then analyzed using a mathematical algorithm to generate an assessment of risk for cancer recurrence.
Mammostrat is well validated, having been clinically studied on more than 3,000 women. Data from Mammostrat trials have also been presented at national conferences, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.
By using the Mammostrat test, pathologists, oncologists, and patients can gain greater understanding of the aggressiveness of a patient’s disease and guide clinical management. Mammostrat provides additional clinical information that cannot be obtained from routinely used prognostic factors. The Mammostrat test can be performed on small biopsy samples, and results are typically delivered in as little as 48 to 72 hours, thereby allowing more rapid treatment decisions.
"Mammostrat can be an important tool for clinicians assessing the aggressiveness of their patient’s breast cancer," said Clarient vice chairman and chief executive officer Ron Andrews. "Mammostrat results can provide clinicians important information to help select the appropriate therapeutic management for each individual patient. For patients, Mammostrat offers the confidence that the decisions being made to manage their breast cancer are based on the clinical characteristics of their specific disease using the most current validated technology available."
Mammostrat test development was targeted to breast tumors which express estrogen receptor, the most commonly identified subtype of breast cancer representing about 75% of the women diagnosed each year. The standard of care for most of these patients includes surgery to remove the tumor, followed by anti-hormonal therapy.
Clarient is currently in coverage determination discussions with both government and private insurance carriers. Patents covering the use of the Mammostrat test were granted in the US and Europe in the summer of 2010.
Source: Clarient Inc
