Jeffrey Trent PhDVentana Medical Systems Inc, Tucson, Ariz, a member of the Roche Group, and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), Phoenix, Ariz, will collaborate to discover and develop diagnostic markers for treating cancer, leveraging each other’s expertise in discovery and diagnostic product development.
The first project under the umbrella research agreement will focus on diagnostic, prognostic, and drug biomarkers for pancreatic cancer, the fourth leading cause of death from cancer in the United States.
“TGen is on the cutting edge of translational research, where investigators discover the genetic components of disease,” says Jeffrey Trent, PhD, president and research director, TGen. “Our goal is to rapidly translate basic research findings into actionable targets. Partnering with Ventana we hope will accelerate our goal to deliver meaningful discoveries to cancer patients today.”
Mara AspinallThis year, an estimated 45,000 people will be diagnosed and more than 38,000 patients will die from the disease. Worldwide, more than 213,000 are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year, and the numbers are growing. Fewer than one in four pancreatic cancer patients survive more than a year, and fewer than 6% survive more than 5 years—the worst survival rate of any cancer.
This dismal picture of pancreatic cancer is mainly due to the lack of tools for early detection and the ineffectiveness of current therapeutics, the companies say, which is why new diagnostic markers and more efficacious therapies are desperately needed.
“When a patient is faced with cancer, getting an accurate diagnosis quickly is the most important part of their treatment,” says Mara G. Aspinall, president and CEO, Ventana. “… our strength is moving research into the clinic in order to improve the lives of all patients afflicted with cancer.”
[Source: Ventana Medical Systems and TGen]
