CombiMatrix Corporation (Nasdaq:CBMX) announced today that preliminary data on its investigational Comprehensive Cancer Array test will be presented publicly for the first time, at Cambridge Healthtech Institute's 16th International Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference being held on February 25-27, 2009, in San Francisco.
This test is being designed to be a non-invasive screening tool for the early detection of multiple cancers. Early detection is key to improved survival for patients, and the non-invasive nature of this test (a simple blood draw is needed) makes the market potential as high as 90 million people annually in the United States alone.
The study, titled "Detection of Cancer with Serum miRNAs on an Oligonucleotide Microarray," will be presented as a poster by Dr. Dominic Suciu, Senior Scientist at CombiMatrix.
"We are making progress in our development of this potentially revolutionary test. We are presenting preliminary data now, and will continue to present additional data in publications and at appropriate conferences," said Dr. Amit Kumar, President and CEO of CombiMatrix.
The test is intended to measure, in peripheral blood, the existence and abundance of miRNA molecules that are indicative of tumor growth at the earliest stages.
The presentation will occur in the Exhibit Hall in the Moscone North Convention Center on February 25, 2009. Dr. Suciu will be available throughout the conference to answers questions about the study. Below is the abstract of the presentation.
Abstract Title: Detection of Cancer with Serum miRNAs on an Oligonucleotide Microarray
Authors: Dominic Suciu, Marcelo Caraballo, Michael J. Lodes, Sandra Munro, Amit Kumar, Brooke Anderson.
Abstract: MicroRNA signatures from various tissues have been shown to be unique and have been used to classify a subset of human diseases including cancer. This study is focused on the evaluation of microRNA expression patterns in human serum for five types of human cancer, prostate, colon, ovarian, breast, and lung, using a pan-human microRNA, high density microarray. This microarray platform enables the simultaneous analysis of all human microRNAs by either fluorescent or electrochemical signals, and can be easily redesigned to include newly identified microRNAs. We show that sufficient microRNAs are present in one milliliter of serum to allow discrimination of normal donors and cancer patients without the need for amplification techniques.