Drs. Sean Pitroda and Ralph Weichselbaum, founders of PersonaDx, and a team of researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center developed a method to accurately predict which patients with metastatic colorectal cancer will have a favorable treatment outcome following surgical removal of liver metastases. The method involves combining a panel of genetic biomarkers and clinical features of the tumor to determine distinct subgroups of cancer that correspond to different treatment outcomes. This is a groundbreaking discovery for the metastatic cancer industry, where 95% of patients with cancer die from metastasis.
Study highlights include:
Discovered three distinct molecular patterns that categorized metastases into canonical, immune, or stromal subtypes based on mRNA and miRNA profiles
The subtypes combined with clinical features exhibited starkly different 10-year survival rates of 94%, 45%, and 19% for low-risk, intermediate-risk, and high-risk patients, respectively.
The mathematical model developed by Dr. Pitroda’s team predicted the molecular subtype of the disease with 96% accuracy
Molecular profiling was performed on 147 colorectal cancer patients with limited liver metastasis treated with chemotherapy and surgery on the phase 3 randomized New-EPOC clinical trial in the United Kingdom
The findings validate a novel biomarker panel consisting of 31 genes which identifies which patients will have long-term survival after treatment
“When the molecular subtypes were combined with clinical features like tumor size and lymph node involvement, it strongly predicted the patient’s prognosis,” said Pitroda. Patients with low-risk disease had an excellent chance of survival (80% at five years), in stark contrast to intermediate-risk (60% survival) and high-risk (40% survival) groups.
We now have validated the first oligometastasis biomarker for predicting outcomes for patients with colorectal cancer spread to the liver. “Our findings provide a novel framework for staging and classifying metastasis which could lead to improved personalized therapy for patients by optimally integrating both local and systemic interventions,” said Pitroda. “Although we have conducted these studies in colorectal cancer metastasis, a similar approach could be applied to other types of cancer. We believe this will challenge the way we currently treat metastatic disease and open new opportunities to design future clinical trials and improve outcomes for our patients,” he added.
A podcast interview with Dr. Pitroda is available through JAMA Oncology Author Interviews, available on the JAMA website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other podcast platforms.
The assay described in the JAMA article, Persona31g, will be marketed by PersonaDx Inc.
About PersonaDx
PersonaDx is a precision oncology company focused on developing and commercializing biomarker assays for metastatic disease, radiotherapy, and solid tumor cancer treatment. Our mission is to ensure that all people with cancer receive the right treatment with the right dose at the right time. As explained in the JAMA article, we are first to the market with the first known validated assay for metastatic colorectal cancer. PersonaDx was founded by oncology experts and leading scientists, Ralph Weichselbaum and Sean Pitroda, from the University of Chicago and is based in Chicago, Illinois. For more information visit: https://persona-dx.com/