Biodesix this week announced it has been issued four US patents covering intellectual property underlying its protein biomarker-based companion diagnostic VeriStrat, providing coverage for the product across multiple tumor types.
Specifically, the patents cover the selection of non-small cell lung cancer patients for treatment with antibodies targeting the epidermal growth-factor receptor pathway; and the selection of colorectal cancer patients and head and neck cancer patients for treatment with drugs targeting the epidermal growth-factor receptor pathway. The company also received a patent covering its laboratory operations.
Biodesix launched VeriStrat commercially in May 2009, offering it out of its CLIA-accredited laboratory. In March, the company received CLIA certification in New York, making the test available in all 50 states (PM 03/04/2011).
During the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in January, Biodesix's vice president of business development and strategic marketing, Paul Beresford, told ProteoMonitor sister publication GenomeWeb Daily News that the company was looking to forge pharmaceutical partnerships to increase adoption of VeriStrat and was in the process of signing approximately 20 deals around the test (GWDN 01/21/2011).