NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Qiagen and Lilly inked their third companion diagnostic deal this week.
The companies did not disclose the drug or the molecular diagnostic target that the test will gauge.
Qiagen highlighted that the latest deal "builds on a master collaboration agreement for development of tailored therapies in cancer and other therapeutic areas signed earlier this year."
Qiagen garnered US Food and Drug Administration approval in July 2012 for its Therascreen KRAS RGQ PCR Kit, which is a companion test for the metastatic colorectal cancer drug Erbitux (cetuximab). Lilly co-markets Erbitux with Bristol-Myers Squibb.
In 2011, Qiagen and Lilly partnered to advance a companion test that gauges the JAK2 gene, associated with some blood cancers. The test is guiding the use of Lilly's investigational agent in clinical trials.
The companion diagnostics being developed with Lilly will use Qiagen's real-time PCR based Rotor-Gene Q MDx instrument.
The companies haven't disclosed the financial details of their agreements.