NEW YORK – UK-based liquid biopsy firm Angle said Tuesday that it inked an agreement with drug firm Eisai to conduct a pilot study on the use of Angle's HER2 assay to guide treatment of breast cancer patients with HER2-expressing solid tumors.
The study, for which Angle will receive $250,000, will evaluate the use of Angle's Portrait HER2 assay to evaluate breast cancer patients' HER2 status in a Phase II study of the HER2-targeting antibody-drug conjugate BB-1701. Angle's Portrait HER2 assay provides quantitative determination of HER2 protein expression and HER2/neu gene amplification in circulating tumor cells, and it is used to identify patients who could benefit from anti-HER2 ADC therapy, which Tokyo-based Eisai is codeveloping with China-based Bliss Biopharmaceutical.
"Angle's Portrait HER2 assay provides a way to evaluate HER2 status in patients where a tissue biopsy at the metastatic site either fails or is not feasible," Angle CEO Andrew Newland said in a statement. "We are delighted that Eisai is utilizing our new HER2 assay for this study and believe that a successful pilot study will lead the way to major expansion of this line of our business going forward."
Angle said the pilot study also could lead to larger-scale follow-up studies.