Prometheus Laboratories Inc, San Diego, has introduced a comprehensive new serum test that measures and monitors mucosal healing status in Crohn’s disease patients. The Prometheus Monitr Crohn’s disease test provides a noninvasive tool for patient management.
Crohn’s disease has traditionally been difficult to monitor because the only available diagnostic tools have been colonoscopy and endoscopy, both of which are invasive, expensive, and challenging for the patient. Additionally, symptoms do not necessarily correlate to the amount of inflammation present. Monitr gives the physician flexibility for assessing mucosal disease; the test can be used as an adjunct to endoscopy or by itself, between endoscopies, allowing for more frequent, noninvasive monitoring.
“Our goal is to see patients achieve mucosal healing or significant improvements in mucosal health,” says Marla Dubinsky, MD, chief of pediatric gastroenterology and hepatology and codirector of the Susan and Leonard Feinstein Inflammatory Bowel Disease Clinical Center at the Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai. “To do that, we really need an objective way to view snapshots of the mucosa without frequent scoping. The more noninvasive biomarkers we can assay to objectively evaluate the mucosa, the better off patients will be.”
Clinical validation of the Monitr test demonstrated high accuracy and concordance rates with endoscopically visualized mucosal disease activity among adult Crohn’s disease patients, regardless of the anatomical disease location or selected treatment regimens. Monitr will allow healthcare providers to evaluate Crohn’s disease patients who have suspected active disease in difficult-to-reach locations, such as the small bowel. The test can be performed with or without endoscopy. Every Monitr test report provides a single objective mucosal healing index score that can be used to assess and track disease activity over time.
“Monitr is a powerful patient counseling tool that addresses an unmet need,” says Warren Cresswell, general manager and head of diagnostics at Prometheus Laboratories. “It can help healthcare providers discuss difficult treatment decisions with their patients. Monitr represents our continued focus and commitment to helping improve patient care through innovation and testing excellence.”
For more information, visit Prometheus.
