iCellate Medical Ramps Up Prostate Study with Capio Urology Center

Stockholm, Sweden – April 18, 2023 – iCellate continues validation of its circulating tumor cell (CTC) platform CellMate® across various cancer indications. In collaboration with Capio Urology Center in Liljeholmen, Sweden, iCellate launches study to investigate the clinical value of CTC analysis in prostate cancer patients at various stages of disease.

Despite prostate cancer being one of the most common cancers in men, the question of whether to implement prostate cancer screening remains unanswered. As is the case for many cancers, the characterization and treatment of prostate cancer is more commonly dependent on biomarker status as determined by molecular analysis.

iCellate’s CellMate® is a circulating tumor cell (CTC)-based platform for cancer cell detection and biomarker analysis. The isolation of CTCs in the blood provides for a more comprehensive analysis of genomic and protein biomarkers to support treatment selection.

Clinical practice for diagnosis and characterization of a cancer requires a tumor tissue biopsy. A tissue biopsy, however, is not always obtainable and may be associated with complications.

- We strive to use the most precise tools as possible when diagnosing prostate cancer. If the study produces the desired results, then we’ll be able to give more patients an alternative to tissue biopsy in the form of a liquid biopsy, says Thomas Hopfgarten, CEO and physician at Capio Urology Center Liljeholmen.

The objective of the study is not only to investigate CellMate®’s ability to detect CTCs across stages of disease, but also to analyze expression of the cell surface marker PSMA (prostate specific membrane antigen). A prostate cancer patient that expresses PSMA may benefit from a PSMA-targeted therapy, a growing area of development in the pharmaceutical industry.

- Novartis’s Pluvicto was the first PSMA-targeted therapy to receive regulatory approval in 2022 and is now being studied in additional indications. Several other pharmaceutical companies are not far behind with their own PSMA-targeted therapies in pipeline. Today’s companion diagnostic used to identify patients that may benefit from PSMA-targeted therapy is PSMA PET, but cost and accessibility may be prohibitive factors, says Victoria Brehmer, Business Development Manager at iCellate.

What makes iCellate’s CTC platform, CellMate®, such an attractive companion diagnostic candidate is the ability to assess both genomic variation via sequencing and antigen expression via protein analysis. In other words, CellMate® is uniquely suited to guide therapy selection against both genomic and protein targets.

This study will investigate the CTC profiles of patients with all stages of prostate cancer as well as of age matched controls.

The study is expected to reach completion by the end of 2023.

Tags: