Pillar Biosciences said Aug. 19 that its oncoReveal Essential+ liquid biopsy assay has been validated for use in genomic screening of blood-based samples from lung cancer patients participating in the LC-SCRUM-Asia project in Japan.
Following approval of a revision to the LC-SCRUM-Asia project protocol, testing should begin this month. Over two years, LSI Medience will perform testing for approximately 2,000 patients, using oncoReveal Essential+ to screen circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and cell-free RNA (cfRNA) for genomic alterations.
“Rapid and reliable genomic testing is essential for identifying patients who may benefit from biomarker-driven clinical studies and emerging precision therapies,” Koichi Goto, a researcher on LC-SCRUM-Asia and an oncologist at Japan’s National Cancer Center Hospital East (NCCHE,) said in a statement. The test will provide the LC-SCRUM-Asia network “with a highly accurate and accessible liquid biopsy solution for analyzing cfDNA and cfRNA from patients with non-small cell lung cancer, while supporting the rapid turnaround needed for clinical research,” he added.
LC-SCRUM-Asia is a large-scale lung cancer genomic screening and clinical research network led by NCCHE.