Immunovia’s PanFAM-1: The largest study of hereditary pancreatic cancer risk, gathers momentum in the US
Two additional centers in New York and Chicago join the drive to validate the IMMrayTM PanCan-d test designed for early detection of pancreatic cancer
LUND, SWEDEN ― According to the American Cancer Society, as many as 10% of pancreatic cancers are caused by inherited genetic mutations. Furthermore, these mutations may increase risk of other cancers such as breast, ovarian and skin and eye melanomas. PanFAM-1 is the largest prospective study to date, that is looking at early diagnosis in high-risk individuals with Familial Pancreatic Cancer (FPC). Designed to validate Immunovia ́s innovative blood test, IMMray™ PanCan-d, the study will analyze more than a thousand individuals over a three-year period across sites in both the US and Europe that currently offer FPC screening programs.
Today Immunovia announced the addition of two major centers in the US:
University of Chicago Medical Center
Principal investigator: Sonia Kupfer, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine
Columbia University
Principal investigator: Fay Kastrinos, MD
“We are excited to announce the addition of the University of Chicago Medical Center and Columbia University to our ground-breaking study, PanFAM-1. Their enthusiasm mirrors that of the other pancreatic cancer centers participating in the study, and we now have an unique cohort of top-tier collaborating hospitals, which is a strong competitive advantage” stated Mats Grahn, CEO, Immunovia.
“This is another positive step in the process towards commercialization of IMMray™ PanCan-d. IMMray™ PanCan-d is designed as an aid to the two most commonly used testing methods today – endoscopic ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Imaging, thus further opening the way to screening programs. The American Cancer Society believes that new tests for early detection will help high-risk individuals with a family history of pancreatic cancer,” added Mats Grahn, CEO, Immunovia.“
PanFAM-1 participating partners to date are: Mount Sinai, New York; Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health and Sciences University, Portland, OR; The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Pittsburgh, PA; The Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA; NYU School of Medicine, New York; Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), Montreal Canada; The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania; University of Massachusetts; Yale University MA; The University of Liverpool, UK; University College London (UCL), UK; Ramon y Cajal Institute for Health Research Madrid, Spain; University Hospital of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Spain, Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO Hospitalet) – Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) in Barcelona, Spain, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden, Umeå University Hospital, Sweden and Linköping University Hospital, Sweden.
Details about PanFam-1 are continuously updated on www.ClinicalTrials.gov.
For more information, please contact:
Julie Silber
Investor Relations Director, Immunovia
Tel.: +46-79-3486277
Email: julie.silber@immunovia.com
About Immunovia
Immunovia AB was founded in 2007 by investigators from the Department of Immunotechnology at Lund University and CREATE Health, the Center for Translational Cancer Research in Lund, Sweden. Immunovia’s strategy is to decipher the wealth of information in blood and translate it into clinically useful tools to diagnose complex diseases such as cancer, earlier and more accurately than previously possible. Immunovia´s core technology platform, IMMray™, is based on antibody biomarker microarray analysis. The company is now performing clinical validation studies for the commercialization of IMMray™ PanCan-d that could be the first blood based test for early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. In the beginning of 2016, the company started a program focused on autoimmune diseases diagnosis, prognosis and therapy monitoring. (Source: www.immunovia.com)
Immunovia’s shares (IMMNOV) are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. For more information, please visit www.immunovia.com.
About Pancreatic Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer is one of the most deadly and difficult to detect cancers, as the signs and symptoms are diffuse and similar to other diseases. There are more than 40,000 deaths and over 50,000 new cases diagnosed each year in the U.S. alone, and the five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer is currently 5-8 %. It is predicted to become the second leading cause of cancer death by 2020. However, because resection is more successful in stage I/II, early diagnosis can significantly improve pancreatic cancer patients’ 5-year survival rates from 5-8 % to up to 49%.
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