Qiagen launches liquid biopsy tests for lung, prostate cancer

Qiagen (NYSE:QGEN) today launched two liquid biopsy panels designed to evaluate circulating tumor cells isolated from a patient’s blood samples.

The company’s lung and prostate cancer diagnostic tests will be introduced at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Chicago, according to Qiagen.

“Our AdnaTest liquid biopsy-based portfolio now offers molecular characterization in leading cancers with insights into tumor biology, pathways, relevant biomarkers, cancer progression and even resistance to therapy,” Dr. Thomas Schweins, SVP & head of Qiagen’s life sciences business, said in prepared remarks.

The company’s AdnaTests feature Qiagen’s immunomagnetic cell-selection system, which enriches circulating tumor cells to enable sensitive analysis of genes linked to cancer.

Qiagen’s AdnaTest ProstateCancerPanel kit detects the androgen receptor splice variant 7 in circulating tumor cells isolated from blood samples from prostate tumors. The test assesses potential resistance to drugs for advanced prostate cancer, Qiagen reported, and will be available for researchers to use.

The company’s AdnaTest LungCancer kit uses the specific selection of circulating tumor cells to identify those involved in cancer growth and epithelial-mesenchymaltransition, a marker of resistance to cancer therapy.

“The ability to analyze circulating tumor cells offers potential to expand our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of lung and prostate cancer and advance new approaches to treatment. With the high specificity and sensitivity of the AdnaTest kits, researchers can use liquid biopsies to achieve reliable, accurate characterization of lung and prostate cancer CTCs for interpretation of disease development and metastasis,” Michael Kazinski, senior director & head of sample technologies, added.

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