Bio-Rad and Alleghany Health Network partner for patients with solid tumour cancer

Solid tumour cancers account for 90% of adult human cancers and 50% of childhood malignancies

Bio-Rad Laboratories and Alleghany Health Network (AHN) have partnered to advance clinical evidence for monitoring solid tumour cancers using Bio-Rad’s Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) technology.

The collaboration will use ddPCR technology for molecular residual disease (MRD) monitoring of patients across a range of solid tumour types.

Accounting for approximately 90% of all adult human cancers and half of childhood malignancies, solid tumour cancers can develop in many parts of the body, including the breast, lung, prostate and colon.

Used to provide a critical indication of both remission and potential relapse in patients, MRD testing has been widely adopted for monitoring haematological malignancies and is now being implemented for solid tumour diseases.

As part of the agreement, the collaboration will combine Bio-Rad’s digital PCR technology and expertise in molecular oncology, assay design and development with AHN’s cancer-care expertise, clinical data and patient samples collected via its Cancer Institute’s Moonshot programme, which has collected thousands of samples and data from patients since its launch in 2016.

Both aim to generate clinical evidence to support Bio-Rad’s ddPCR systems, including the QX600 ddPCR system, in routine MRD monitoring of patients with a variety of solid tumour types.

Bio-Rad’s multiplex ddPCR technology will be used to help detect molecular responses earlier and more precisely than any other commonly used technologies, such as next-generation sequencing.

Simon May, executive vice president and president, life sciences, Bio-Rad, commented: “We are proud to be active players in the growing MRD space and we are confident that the unmatched sensitivity and precision of our ddPCR platform takes the industry another step towards improving the lives of cancer patients.”

William LaFramboise, professor and chief genomics technology officer, AHN Cancer Institute, said: “Implementing novel molecular technology… will allow us to monitor the response of solid tumours to therapy using routine patient blood samples and will help us achieve proof-of-concept for Bio-Rad’s ddPCR platform in detecting MRD in our patients.”