SHANGHAI, China, May 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Burning Rock today announces the initiation of its 14,000 patient PREDICT (Pan-CanceR Early DetectIon ProjeCT) study to further develop and validate its pan-cancer early detection technology. PREDICT will be the first early detection study in multiple cancer types in China.
Cancer is the leading cause of death in China, with estimated five million new cases and three million deaths annually. In 2019, Premier Keqiang Li emphasized in his Report to the National People's Congress the need to promote early cancer diagnosis and treatment through breakthrough research.
Burning Rock will collaborate with Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital as well as other leading medical centers across China on this study. Professor Jia Fan, Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital, will be the lead Principal Investigator of PREDICT.
PREDICT is a prospective, multi-center study that is expected to enroll 14,000 patients in China. Burning Rock’s proprietary blood-based circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) test for pan-cancer early detection is based on its ELSA-seq technology for the detection of methylation profiles. Through four years of development, Burning Rock’s ELSA-seq has demonstrated signs of potential effectiveness, delivering a sensitivity of 90% in liver cancer, 89% in colorectal cancer, and 66% in lung cancer at 95% specificity [1]. Models on additional cancer types are also under ongoing development.
”Detecting at an early stage is a critical step towards improving survival and quality of life for cancer patients,” said Professor Fan. “CfDNA methylation-based tests, due to their high sensitivity and tissue of origin traceability, have emerged as a promising approach for cancer early detection and are currently undergoing clinical validation globally. Burning Rock’s pan-cancer early detection test has demonstrated promising initial results. We look to further refine and validate the test through the PREDICT study. I look forward to collaborating with Burning Rock and other researchers to bring cancer early detection closer to clinical practice.”
“The initiation of the PREDICT study marks an important milestone on executing our multi-year roadmap of developing a pan-cancer early detection test for the China market,” said Yusheng Han, founder and CEO of Burning Rock. “There is a critical need for cancer early detection in China, where a higher proportion of cancer patients are diagnosed at late stage compared to developed countries. If cancer is only detected at a later stage, the survival rate is lower and the costs of patient care much higher. We are excited about bringing our blood-based pan-cancer test into the clinical validation stage.”
About Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital
Founded in 1937 and affiliated with Fudan University, Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital is one of China’s largest academic comprehensive hospitals. In 2018, the hospital performed 104,000 operations, served 169,000 inpatients and over 4,236,000 outpatients. It was ranked top 5 in the 2018 China’s General Hospital Rankings [2].
About Burning Rock
Burning Rock, whose mission is to Guard Life via Science, focuses on the application of next generation sequencing (NGS) technology in the field of precision oncology. Its business consists of i) NGS-based therapy selection testing for late-stage cancer patients, with the leading market share in China and over 185,000 tissue and liquid-based tests completed cumulatively, and ii) NGS-based cancer early detection, which has moved beyond proof-of-concept R&D into the clinical validation stage.
References
- https://www.aacr.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/ALB20_Posters_Merged_A.pdf.“Multiplatform analysis of early-stage cancer signatures in blood”.
- http://rank.cn-healthcare.com/rank/general-best
Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about the Company’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon management’s current expectations and current market and operating conditions, and relate to events that involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company’s control. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any such statements. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.