ARUP, Oncimmune Collaborate on Test For Early Detection of Lung Cancer

Salt Lake City-based ARUP Laboratories has teamed with Oncimmune USA to offer a new blood-based test that can provide early detection of lung cancer. As part of the arrangement between the two companies, ARUP will send all samples for Oncimmune’s laboratory in Kansas City, Kan., to run the assay, known as the EarlyCDT-Lung test. It measures autoantibodies in blood that form in response to the early stages of carcinogenesis. “We believe that our partnership with ARUP can improve the well-being of many individuals who are at risk for developing lung cancer,” said Greg Stanley, Oncimmune’s chief commercial officer. Although the company is based in the United Kingdom, it has extensive operations in the United States. According to peer-reviewed clinical data, the Oncimmune test has one-seventh the rate of false positives that occur with computerized tomography scanning. It currently is being used by about 2,000 physicians in the United States and is undergoing a randomized clinical trial in Scotland for high-risk patients. “We are delighted to make the EarlyCDT-Lung test available to our clients through this partnership with Oncimmune,” said David Grenache, M.D., ARUP’s medical director of special chemistry. “This test represents a novel . . . approach to testing those individuals at high risk of developing lung cancer. We feel it is a welcome addition to our extensive oncology test menu and complements our existing lung cancer test offerings.” About 160,000 Americans die of lung cancer every year, and more than 226,000 new cases are diagnosed. Mortality rates tend to be lower if the disease is detected in its earlier stages.