BALTIMORE, Md. and MONTREAL, July 29,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Haystack Oncology, a Quest
Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) company, announced today a research
collaboration with Dr. Simon
Turcotte, hepatopancreatobiliary surgeon and scientist at
Université de Montréal's affiliated hospital research centre, the
CRCHUM, to utilize Haystack Oncology's personalized MRD technology
(Haystack MRD™) to evaluate treatment effectiveness in patients
with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) with metastases confined
to the liver.
This prospective, observational study, Early Detection of
Treatment Failure in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Patients
(eDetect), will use Haystack MRD to assess circulating tumor DNA
(ctDNA) as an early biological marker of treatment response and
disease recurrence in patients with mCRC undergoing systemic
treatment and liver surgery with curative intent. Haystack MRD is a
blood-based liquid biopsy test that measures ctDNA shed into
circulation by solid tumors in order to identify residual,
recurrent, or resistant cancer, at the earliest possible stage.
"Our collaboration with the CRCHUM presents a valuable
opportunity to leverage the performance of our Haystack MRD
technology in a population of mCRC patients for whom cure is
possible," said Dan Edelstein, Vice
President and General Manager of Haystack Oncology. "Designed for
detecting ctDNA with exceptional sensitivity, Haystack MRD is
well-suited to measure treatment response in oligometastatic CRC
patients to better understand how ctDNA can guide the sequence and
intensity of therapy in the future."
Université de Montréal's affiliated hospital research centre,
the CRCHUM, is one of North
America's leading hospital research centres. Located in the
heart of Montreal, the CRCHUM is a
major centre for creation, knowledge generation and training.
"mCRC is a challenging disease in need of improved biomarkers to
guide optimal patient care," said Dr. Simon
Turcotte, hepatopancreatobiliary surgeon and scientist at
the CRCHUM, also principal investigator of the eDetect study. "By
teaming up with Haystack, we will be able to understand the best
use of the MRD technology to inform treatment decisions. This will
guide the design of future interventional trials to assess impact
on patient survival."
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in
Canada and the United States, representing approximately
62,310 related deaths in 2023.1,2 While early-stage
CRC can frequently be cured by surgery (with or without adjuvant
chemotherapy), mCRC is often treatment-resistant and can be more
difficult to address.3
Metastases are the primary cause of colorectal cancer-related
mortality, with the liver being the most frequent site for
metastasis, followed by the lung. Patients presenting with
metastases confined to the liver represent a unique clinical
opportunity to pursue surgery with intent to cure. However, even
after surgery with no evidence of residual tumor by medical
imaging, 80% of patients relapse. A more sensitive diagnostic tool,
such as ctDNA, is needed to detect whether residual microscopic
cancer cells remain after surgery, to detect relapse earlier than
medical imaging so as to treat before the disease burden is too
high, and to know as early as possible whether chemotherapy is
effective to limit unnecessary use and side effects.
About Haystack Oncology
Haystack Oncology represents
the culmination of over 20 years of collaboration to advance
technical and clinical development in liquid biopsy technologies by
cancer genomics pioneers at Johns Hopkins
School of Medicine. The company, a wholly owned subsidiary
of Quest Diagnostics, developed Haystack MRD™, a next generation
tumor-informed approach for the measurement of minimal residual
disease. Haystack MRD uses an error-corrected ctDNA technology to
detect down to one ctDNA molecule in a million normal DNA
molecules. Haystack Oncology works with biopharmaceutical companies
to accelerate and better inform clinical development programs and
advance important therapeutics to global markets, from early phase
clinical development to companion diagnostics. Learn more
at haystackmrd.com.
About Quest Diagnostics
Quest Diagnostics works across
the healthcare ecosystem to create a healthier world, one life at a
time. We provide diagnostic insights from the results of our
laboratory testing to empower people, physicians and organizations
to take action to improve health outcomes. Derived from one of the
world's largest databases of deidentified clinical lab results,
Quest's diagnostic insights reveal new avenues to identify and
treat disease, inspire healthy behaviors and improve healthcare
management. Quest Diagnostics annually serves one in three adult
Americans and half the physicians and hospitals in the United States, and our nearly 50,000
employees understand that, in the right hands and with the right
context, our diagnostic insights can inspire actions that transform
lives and create a healthier world. www.QuestDiagnostics.com.
About Université de Montréal's affiliated hospital research
centre, the CRCHUM
Université de Montréal's affiliated
hospital research centre, the CRCHUM, is one of North America's leading hospital research
centres. Its mission is to improve adult health through a research
continuum that includes disciplines such as basic science, clinical
research and population health. More than 2,150 people work at the
CRCHUM, including nearly 500 researchers and some 650 students and
postdoctoral fellows. crchum.com
1 2023 Colorectal Cancer Statistics | Canadian Cancer
Society
2 USA National Cancer
Institute | Colorectal Cancer — Cancer Stat Facts
3 Shin AE, Giancotti FG, Rustgi AK. Metastatic colorectal cancer:
mechanisms and emerging therapeutics. Trends Pharmacol Sci.
2023 Apr;44(4):222-236. doi: 10.1016/j.tips.2023.01.003. Epub 2023
Feb 23. PMID: 36828759; PMCID: PMC10365888.
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