Provista Diagnostics, a company based in New York City, has developed the Videssa Breast blood-based proteomic test to detect breast cancer. At present, after an abnormal mammogram doctors are faced with a difficult decision: whether to carry out an invasive biopsy or not. “When a mammogram yields an abnormal result, the challenge for every clinician is to decide which patients need follow-up, further imaging or biopsy,” said Josie R. Alpers, MD, a radiologist at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center.
The Videssa Breast diagnostic test aims to provide doctors with a third option, a simple blood test to test for breast tumor biomarkers in the blood. The idea is that the test can help to rule in or out further biopsies or imaging. “With about 1.6 million breast biopsies performed each year, the implications of a blood test that can help clinicians confidently rule out breast cancer and avoid a potentially unnecessary biopsy are tremendous,” said Judith K. Wolf, MD, Provista Diagnostics Chief Medical Officer.
The diagnostic test works by using ELISA technology to measuring levels of proteins in the serum that have been identified as associated with breast cancer. This includes a panel of 11 serum protein biomarkers and 33 tumor-associated autoantibodies, produced by the body in response to breast tumors. The test uses antibodies to bind the biomarkers and autoantibodies in the blood sample, to allow their levels to be measured.
The diagnostic test was recently trialed in a group of women under 50 years old, who are more difficult to assess for breast cancer using imaging techniques. The women had abnormal or difficult-to-interpret breast imaging results. The study, published in Clinical Breast Cancer, showed that the test was particularly good at ruling out breast cancer, and had the potential to reduce the number of required biopsies by up to 67%.
Link: Provista Diagnostics homepage…
Via: Provista Diagnostics
