DiaCarta Receives NCI Contract for a Circulating Free DNA (cfDNA) Test to Monitor Radiation Response in Cancer Patients
California-based molecular diagnostics company DiaCarta, Inc., has received a SBIR contract from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). This contract will fund a collaborative program between DiaCarta and University of Florida Health Cancer Center to convert RadTox QuantiDNATM into a cutting-edge test that monitors radiation response in cancer patients.
DiaCarta, which has clinical laboratory sites located in the San Francisco Bay area and Nanjing, China, has developed and commercialized a suite of highly sensitive and specific technologies and products for the detection and quantitation of nucleic acids directly from bodily fluids without DNA purification. With support from the NCI, DiaCarta will employ its QuantiDNATM to monitor circulating free DNA (cfDNA), a patented DNA biomarker, directly from patient plasma during radiation therapy. Currently, there exists no reliable methodology for determining radiation response during radiotherapy. Utilizing blood specimens from patients undergoing radiotherapy for prostate cancer at the UF Davis Cancer Center and the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, DiaCarta will fully validate their current RadTox QuantiDNATM product as a laboratory developed test (LDT) and pursue regulatory approval for global distribution.
“This will be a breakthrough ‘first-in-class’ IVD test in the field of radiation therapy and the first cfDNA test to be supported by the NCI for real-time detection of tumor and normal tissue responses to radiation. It is a significant milestone in the field of patient monitoring of radiation therapy response,” said Aiguo Zhang, PhD, CEO of DiaCarta. “Radiation treatment is required by 70% of cancer patients,” he said. “However, despite decades of advances in cancer care and technology, there remain many fundamental challenges affecting safe and efficacious delivery of radiation treatment. Our QuantiDNATM test has the potential to overcome these challenges.”
“We are fulfilling an unmet medical need in cancer radiation therapy by enabling the direct monitoring of side effect severity and tumor response within days of treatment initiation,” said Paul Okunieff, MD, chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the UFHCC. “This NCI-supported contract puts us in a powerful position to begin development of quantitative and personalized ‘liquid biopsies.’ It is a very exciting opportunity for the UF Department of Radiation Oncology and the Okunieff Lab to make a real difference in the quality and safety of care for individual cancer patients.”
“DiaCarta is committed to precision medicine with our strong expertise in biomarker discovery and breakthrough technologies. RadTox QuantiDNATM has the potential to make personalized medicine in radiation oncology a reality. We are very excited to collaborate with the UFHCC, one of the largest cancer centers in the U.S., to validate the novel test and potentially increase the quality and safety of radiation therapy for its patients,” said Dr. Zhang.
Florida Selects DiaCarta’s cfDNA Test (RadTox™) for Statewide Use to Detect Early Response of Cancer Treatment
DiaCarta, a leading molecular diagnostics company specializing in personalized patient care through liquid biopsy, proudly announced that Florida Health Department selected “using plasma DNA concentration (DiaCarta’s RadTox™ test) for early detection of treatment response and resistance” through the Casey DeSantis Florida Cancer Innovation Fund. This fund supports deployment of the RadTox™ test throughout the State of Florida to be performed between Radiotherapy or Chemotherapy doses for real time detection of treatment response or resistance. The results will be as a real time predictor of imaging data.
DiaCarta Announces That the Oncuria® Bladder Cancer Tests Receive Medicare Coverage Effective January 1, 2024
DiaCarta proudly announced that the Oncuria® Bladder Cancer Tests, developed by Nonagen Bioscience and validated by DiaCarta as a Lab Developed Test (LDT), at its CAP-accredited and CLIA-certified laboratory, have received Medicare coverage effective January 1, 2024.
DiaCarta, Inc. and OncoAssure Ltd. Collaborate to Launch Prostate Cancer Lab Developed Test
DiaCarta, Inc. (“DiaCarta”), a pioneer in molecular diagnostic test development for cancer and infectious diseases, today announced that it has established a strategic collaboration with OncoAssure Ltd, an Irish medical diagnostics company. The focus of the collaboration is to commercialize OncoAssure’s groundbreaking Prostate test which is designed to identify patients with a lower risk of prostate cancer recurrence, guiding decisions on active surveillance or reduced monitoring post-treatment.
DiaCarta’s RadTox™ Test to Monitor Tumor Response Receives Medicare Coverage
DiaCarta, a leading molecular diagnostics company personalizing patient care through liquid biopsy, proudly announced that its revolutionary RadTox™ test, designed for tumor response monitoring, is now eligible for reimbursement from Medicare, effective January 1, 2024.
DiaCarta Launches OTC at Home Fecal Occult Blood Test to Complement its ColoScape™ Test
DiaCarta announced today that DiaCarta received US FDA 510(k) clearance for it’s over the counter (OTC) at home iColon Fecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT) that enables early detection of blood in stool at home, which is clinically relevant in gastrointestinal disorders and colorectal cancer.