NEW YORK — Israeli precision oncology and proteomics startup OncoHost said on Monday that it has begun working with Heidelberg University Hospital in Germany on the discovery of lung cancer biomarkers.
Under the terms of the deal, OncoHost will collaborate with Lung Biobank Heidelberg, a resource established by the university hospital's Thorax Clinic, to collect and analyze blood samples in order to identify novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets for lung cancer, primarily in immunotherapy-treated non-small cell lung cancer patients. The work, OncoHost said, aims to improve patient stratification and support personalized treatment.
OncoHost, which is running clinical trials of its proteomic- and AI-based Prophet platform for predicting therapy response and treatment resistance in NSCLC and melanoma, said the partners will share data resulting from the alliance.
Additional terms were not disclosed.
"Availability of blood samples at baseline and throughout treatment is increasingly important for patient management in non-small cell lung cancer, especially for the application of targeted therapies such as immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment," Thomas Muley, head of Lung Biobank Heidelberg, said in a statement. "Collaborating with OncoHost on this crucial project will allow us to provide improved personalized oncology care for lung cancer patients on a global scale."