This article has been updated from a previous version to retract information originally provided by Abbott in a statement.
NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Abbott today announced that it has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with the Institut Curie for a biomarker for bladder cancer.
Genetic mutations in FGFR3 can be used for early detection, disease monitoring, and predicting patient outcomes in both urine and tissue-based testing. FGFR3 gene mutations are seen in about 70 percent of low-grade and 15 to 20 percent of high-grade bladder cancer cases.
Abbott currently offers UroVysion, a FISH-based bladder cancer kit. An assay based on FGFR3mutations could help doctors diagnose bladder cancer patients earlier, when treatment is most successful. Most patients with clinically localized bladder cancer can be treated successfully with surgery and chemotherapy, and nine in 10 patients with stage 1 bladder cancer live five years or longer.
PersonalizeDx, an Abbott-owned CLIA laboratory, plans to make the FGFR3 mutation analysis assay available in early 2015. Abbott is also gearing up for further studies as well as exploring collaborations with pharmaceutical companies to employ the FGFR3 test and other biomarkers as companion diagnostics for emerging bladder cancer therapies.