NAMUR, Belgium, Jan. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- VolitionRx Limited (OTCQB: VNRX), a life sciences company focused on developing blood-based diagnostic tests for a broad range of cancer types and other conditions, today announced it has signed an agreement to commence a pilot ovarian cancer study in collaboration with Singapore General Hospital (SGH). Blood and tissue samples collected from 40 patients will be assessed to establish the feasibility of VolitionRx's proprietary NuQ® assays in detecting ovarian cancer. If this test proves to be accurate, it could offer hope as an early-stage screening tool.
The collaboration with SGH will be VolitionRx's first to focus solely on patients from an Asian ethnic background. The Hospital will provide 20 matched blood and tissue samples from patients with ovarian cancer as well as blood samples from 20 healthy donors. The anonymised and blinded samples will be analysed by VolitionRx's team and will be the first matched tissue and blood samples to be assessed using its NuQ® assays. On completion of the analyses, the data will be unblinded and together the parties will evaluate the performance of the test.
Dr. Jake Micallef, Chief Scientific Officer of VolitionRx, added, "This pilot study is incredibly important for us. By working with a small patient population, we are hopeful that we can collect initial data to demonstrate the performance of our Nucleosomics® technology through a simple blood test to detect ovarian cancer in a non-invasive way. If the pilot results are favourable and we successfully commercialize the test, we intend to set up a center of excellence in Singapore to service the whole Asian region with regard to screening for ovarian cancer, a cancer for which early detection is crucial."
VolitionRx will retain the intellectual property from the study.
Other clinical trials assessing the effectiveness of Volition's assays include:
- A 4,800 patient retrospective symptomatic population study in colorectal cancer at Hvidovre Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- A 14,000 patient prospective screening study in colorectal cancer at Hvidovre Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- A 4,000 patient prospective study that involves patients with the 20 most prevalent cancers at University Hospital in Bonn, Germany
- A 600 patient prospective confirmatory study in lung cancer at University Hospital in Bonn, Germany
- A 250 patient prospective study in colorectal cancer at CHU-UCL Mont Godinne Hospital, Belgium
- A retrospective study with MD Anderson, Texas, to establish the efficacy of VolitionRx's NuQ® tests to distinguish anaplastic prostate cancer, a particularly aggressive form of the disease, from typical castration resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), the less aggressive form.
- A prospective study with the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, to assess VolitionRx's NuQ® tests for the diagnosis of endometriosis.
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About VolitionRx
VolitionRx is a life sciences company focused on developing diagnostic tests for cancer and other conditions. The tests are based on the science of Nucleosomics, which is the practice of identifying and measuring nucleosomes in the bloodstream or other bodily fluid – an indication that disease is present.
VolitionRx's goal is to make the tests as common and simple to use, for both patients and doctors, as existing diabetic and cholesterol blood tests. VolitionRx's research and development activities are currently centred in Belgium as the company focuses on bringing its diagnostic products to market first in Europe, then in the US and ultimately, worldwide.
Visit VolitionRx's website (www.volitionrx.com) or connect with us via Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.
Media Contacts
Charlotte Reynolds, VolitionRx
Charlotte.Reynolds@volitionrx.com
Telephone: +44 (0) 795 217 7498
Kirsten Thomas, The Ruth Group
kthomas@theruthgroup.com
Telephone: +1 (646) 536-7014
Investor Contacts
Scott Powell, Investor Relations
S.Powell@volitionrx.com
Telephone: +1 (646) 650-1351
Lee Roth, The Ruth Group
lroth@theruthgroup.com
Telephone: +1 (646) 536-7012
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this press release may be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that concern matters that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "optimizing," "potential," "goal," "suggests" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements relate to the effectiveness of the Company's bodily-fluid-based diagnostic tests as well as the Company's ability to develop and successfully commercialize such test platforms for early detection of cancer. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements due to numerous risks and uncertainties. For instance, if we fail to develop and commercialize diagnostic products, we may be unable to execute our plan of operations. Other risks and uncertainties include the Company's failure to obtain necessary regulatory clearances or approvals to distribute and market future products in the clinical IVD market; a failure by the marketplace to accept the products in the Company's development pipeline or any other diagnostic products the Company might develop; the Company will face fierce competition and the Company's intended products may become obsolete due to the highly competitive nature of the diagnostics market and its rapid technological change; and other risks identified in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, as well as other documents that the Company files with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the Company's business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this release, and, except as required by law, the Company does not undertake an obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.
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SOURCE VolitionRX Ltd