NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Opko Health today announced it has granted UK-based International Health Technology the rights to offer a novel panel of protein biomarkers and an associated algorithm in parts of Europe for the detection of prostate cancer.
Under the terms of the deal, IHT will offer the biomarker panel in laboratory settings in the UK, Ireland, Sweden, and Denmark. Financial and other terms were not disclosed.
The deal covers a panel of kallikrein biomarkers, which Opko said studies have shown to be able to eliminate more than half of unnecessary prostate biopsies. Opko had licensed two kallikrein biomarkers from Finnish biotech Arctic Partners, GenomeWeb Daily News' sister publication ProteoMonitor reported earlier this year.
Phillip Frost, Chairman and CEO of Opko, said in a statement, "We believe this technology will enable IHT to provide the patients they serve with better and more efficient healthcare, while lowering overall costs. We hope eventually that this panel will become the standard of care in prostate cancer screening."
Opko, based in Miami, is a multinational biopharmaceutical and diagnostics firm. IHT helps companies commercialize products.