LS CancerDiag Ltd receives patent for revolutionary predictive cancer diagnostic method DiagMMR™
Developed by Finnish company LS CancerDiag Ltd, the groundbreaking diagnostics innovation, DiagMMR™, method for early detection of a family cancer syndrome, has received patent in Australia with applications currently pending in several other countries.
Finnish startup company LS CancerDiag Ltd proudly announces receiving patent in Australia for DiagMMR™, the first functional test developed for diagnosis of inherited mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency, i.e. Lynch syndrome (LS). Moreover, DiagMMR™ has patent applications pending in 10 market areas worldwide. The revolutionary method is based on over 20 years of academic research at the University of Helsinki where the test development has been run by a research group supervised by Professor Minna Nyström, the leading inventor of the DiagMMR™ method.
Lynch syndrome is one of the main single causes of colorectal and endometrial cancers. With up to 1/370 of the population estimated to carry the MMR defect, tens of millions of people are potentially under a severe risk for being affected by Lynch syndrome. While current LS diagnosis relies on tumor studies, the quantitative DiagMMR™ method allows LS mutation carrier diagnosis based on non-invasive tissue sample before the person has developed a cancer, and worth noticing, without knowledge and details of the inherited causative mutation.
“DNA repair mechanism research is crucial to our understanding of Lynch syndrome cancer development. Last week, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2015 was awarded to three researchers for having mapped, at a molecular level, how cells repair damaged DNA and safeguard the genetic information”, explains Professor Nyström. “We are happy to be able to utilize this groundbreaking research and apply it to preventive health care.”
“Lynch Syndrome associated cancer diagnostics market is valued at 35 billion USD with 7.5% CAGR expected. Especially the volumes of predictive screening methods for detecting inherited cancer-causing conditions have been growing due to their nature of supporting preventive care as they can potentially reduce the overall health care costs significantly”, states Tuomas Poskiparta, Commercial Director of LS CancerDiag Ltd. “We are aiming at commercializing DiagMMR™ in 2017 and expect wide market adaptation, for it is the only functional test available to diagnose this complex syndrome with high cancer risk.”
LS CancerDiag Ltd is a Finnish company committed to reducing cancer mortality rates with a low-cost, comprehensive diagnostic method that detects an inherited cancer-causing deficiency prior to cancer formation. DiagMMR™, developed by LS CancerDiag Ltd, is a functional test that can be used for diagnosis of MMR deficiency i.e. Lynch syndrome without prior knowledge of the individual’s genetic background. Established in 2013 and based in Helsinki, LS CancerDiag Ltd is targeting to commercialize DiagMMR™ in 2017. For more information, please visit http://www.lscancerdiag.com/.
For further information, please contact:
Professor Minna Nyström
Founder and Chairman
E-mail: minna.nystrom@lscancerdiag.com
Tuomas Poskiparta
Commercial Director
Telephone: +358 50 3044022
E-mail: tuomas@poskiparta.com