Chinese scientists at Peking University (PKU) in Beijing have developed a new in vitro patient-derived tumor-like cluster (PTC) model, which predicted the outcomes of neoadjuvant and conventional chemotherapies in colon, gastric and breast cancer patients, with a clinical consistency of >93%.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is working with Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd. to develop a companion diagnostic (CDx) to identify non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) mutations who could be eligible for the Tokyo-based company's cancer drug, Enhertu.

Invitae Corp. (NYSE:NVTA) saw its stock flying high June 22 on the news of its agreement to buy Archerdx Inc., with an eye toward enhancing cancer genetics and precision oncology. Investors appear to approve of the deal, with the company’s stock closing at $27.05, up $8.34 or 44.58%.

China-based precision oncology company Genetron Holdings Ltd. and prenatal molecular testing company Progenity Inc. each successfully priced an IPO. This is just the latest demonstration that molecular diagnostics is gaining real traction when it comes to investment.

By targeting chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) to a senescence marker, researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have developed a CAR T cell that had beneficial effects in mouse models of both liver fibrosis and lung cancer.

On June 17, the FDA approved checkpoint blocker Keytruda (pembrolizumab, Merck & Co. Inc.) “for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with unresectable or metastatic tumor mutational burden-high (TMB-H) [?10 mutations/megabase (mut/Mb)] solid tumors, as determined by an FDA-approved test, that have progressed following prior treatment and who have no satisfactory alternative treatment options.” 

HONG KONG – China and U.S.-based Lisen Imprinting Diagnostics Inc. has unveiled its Quantitative Chromogenic Imprinted Gene In-Situ Hybridization (QCIGISH) technology, a novel approach for identifying, visualizing and quantifying the biallelic and multiallelic expressions of an imprinted gene panel associated with cancer status.

Whole genome sequencing is not part of treating patients in practice – or even involved in most clinical trials of drug candidates. But C2i Genomics Inc. is working to make that a reality. It applies pattern recognition to whole genome sequencing to create an individualized fingerprint for a given patient’s tumor. The New York-based startup has raised a $12 million series A round to back the development of its technology, which came out of Cornell and the New York Genome Center.