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Specialised Therapeutics Distributing Oncotype DX Breast Cancer Assay in Australia, New Zealand

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Biopharmaceutical firm Specialised Therapeutics Australia announced today a deal for the distribution of Genomic Health's Oncotype DX breast cancer assay in Australia and New Zealand.

Financial and other terms of the agreement, which took effect Jan. 1, were not disclosed.

STA will be responsible for all commercial operations, including sales and marketing of the test, as well as product support and practitioner education. It has partnered with Healthscope Pathology as part of the deal to oversee logistics in Australia, such as tissue sample management, STA said.

"Many Australian women with early-stage breast cancer have endured debilitating chemotherapy regimens as a precautionary measure," STA CEO Carlo Montagner said in a statement. "This test will arm women and their physicians with more information about the likelihood of the patient benefitting from chemotherapy, as well as recurrence, helping them make a well-informed treatment decision."

The Oncotype DX breast cancer test became available in 2004, and since then more than 19,000 physicians in more than 70 countries have requested more than 400,000 tests, according to STA. It added that the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, St. Gallen, and the European Society for Medical Oncology have incorporated the test into their guidelines.

The UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has also recommended Oncotype DX for use in clinical practice to help guide chemotherapy treatment of patients with early-stage, hormone receptor-positive, invasive breast cancer, STA said.

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