Companion Diagnostics

Many cancer drugs target specific markers on the surface of the tumor.  If the tumor does not express the marker, then the patient is not expected to respond to the drug.  The test to determine effective use of the therapeutic drug for a patient is called companion diagnostics. 

LifeTracDx® provides a simple blood test for companion diagnostics.

Predict Treatment Response

When a patient undergoes a new therapy, it is important to learn quickly whether or not the patient is responding to the treatment.  If the patient is not responding, the oncologist can prescribe a different treatment, so the patient doesn’t lose precious time.  Imaging is typically used to determine disease progression, but imaging requires the tumor to grow bigger to be detected. LifeTracDx can predict treatment response in 30 days.

Prognosis

The following features of CAMLs and CTCs can provide information about the aggressiveness of a cancer . 

• CAML size ≥ 50 µm

• Multi organ matastasis

• Micronuclei (MN) in CAMLs

• Extracellular Vesicles (EVs) budding from CAMLs

• CTC number > 5

• CTC in mitosis

• Other types of tumor-macrophage hybrid cells (TMHCs) besides CAMLs

Genomic Analysis

CAMLs provide whole DNA for sequencing, not fragmented ctDNA in the blood.