Allegro Diagnostics, a leader in the field of molecular diagnostics for lung cancer, has announced that Duncan Whitney, Ph.D., has joined the company as Vice President, Research & Development. Previously, Dr. Whitney worked for Exact Sciences, U.S. Genomics, and Progenika in executive level scientific roles. Dr. Whitney holds a Ph.D. and master’s degrees in chemistry from M.I.T. and a B.S. in chemistry from Colby College.
Duncan Whitney will be a critical player to Allegro’s success as we look to take Allegro Diagnostics’ product portfolio from the bench to the marketplace," said Dan Rippy, President & CEO of Allegro Diagnostics. "Duncan’s extensive experience with both the science and commercialization of molecular diagnostics will serve us well," he added.
Allegro Diagnostics is in the process of launching its clinical trial for BronchoGen(TM) under an investigational device exemption (IDE) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). BronchoGen(TM) uses easily accessible cells lining the airway (bronchial epithelial cells) obtained during bronchoscopy and analyzes their RNA to measure gene expression levels. Allegro’s scientific team has found that specific sets of genes are over- and under-expressed in current or former smokers with lung cancer as compared to those without lung cancer. This finding was validated in a 164 patient study published in Nature Medicine in March, 2007. Importantly, the BronchoGen(TM) approach does not require an actual tissue sample from a suspicious nodule or lesion, which often must be accessed through highly invasive procedures that pose significant risks to the patient. The FDA IDE clinical trial has also received a Fast Track, Phase I/II small business innovation research (SBIR) grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Source: Allegro Diagnostics
