TEL AVIV, Israel, July 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
BioLight Life Sciences Investments Ltd. (OTC: BLGTY)(TASE: BOLT), a firm that invests in, manages and commercializes biomedical innovations grouped into clusters around defined medical conditions, announced today that Micromedic Technologies (TASE: MCTC), BioLight's cancer diagnostic cluster company, achieved successful interim results in a blinded bladder cancer clinical trial with its CellDetect® technology. As a result, Micromedic will continue the trial with the goal of developing a kit for monitoring the recurrence of bladder cancer. This study is being conducted at seven medical centers and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2014.
The interim report indicates sensitivity of the CellDetect® technology method of 88% and specificity of 68%. The results of the test using the CellDetect® technology were compared with results from biopsy or from cystoscopy in cases where biopsies were not taken. The interim results are based on 65 urine samples, of which 25 samples were from bladder cancer patients and 40 were from healthy individuals with a history of bladder cancer.
The test's high sensitivity was repeated among subjects identified as high-grade (advanced) cancer patients as well as among subjects identified as low-grade (early stage) cancer patients.
Suzana Nahum-Zilberberg, BioLight's chief executive officer, said, "These results are very encouraging and are likely to advance the company towards commercializing the second kit using the proprietary CellDetect® technology.Currenttests in the market for monitoring bladder cancer are characterized with low sensitivity and precision, and some are invasive, involve discomfort, and are very expensive. As such, shouldthe interim results be confirmed by final study results, we believe that a test kit incorporating this technology will be positioned with advantages for commercial success."
About Bladder Cancer
Bladder cancer is the fourth most prevalent cancer among males in the U.S. and the seventh most prevalent among males worldwide, with nearly 430,000 new cases of the disease diagnosed globally in 2012. The rate of recurrence is the highest of all cancers and ranges from 50% to 80%. According to U.S. clinical guidelines, patients with a history of urinary bladder cancer are required to undergo three to four tests per year to monitor disease recurrence in the first two years immediately following treatment, and one test annually in the years that follow. Because of high recurrence rates, the cost of diagnosing and treating bladder cancer is among the highest of all cancers.
About CellDetect®
The CellDetect® technology uses proprietary staining to help distinguish cancerous cells from healthy cells. This technology facilitates the performance of tests for detecting cancer by diagnosing the cancerous cells and also following the recurrence of the disease in patients after treatment. Micromedic is using CellDetect® to detect and identify cervical cancer and monitor the recurrence of bladder cancer. The cervical cancer detection screening diagnostic test kit is in the initial commercial stage and Micromedic is conducting a clinical trial to prove its ability to monitor bladder cancer recurrence. Micromedic believes that the underlying technology may be adapted for other types of cancer as well.
About BioLight
BioLight Life Sciences Investments invests in, manages and commercializes biomedical innovations grouped into "clusters" around defined medical conditions. Its two current clusters are in ophthalmology via 100% ownership of XLVision Sciences and in cancer diagnostics via a 29% controlling ownership of Micromedic (TASE: MCTC). XLVision technologies include IOPtiMate', a laser-based noninvasive surgical treatment for glaucoma; TeaRx, a point-of-care dry-eye syndrome diagnostic test; and Eye-D®, a long-term controlled-release insert platform. Micromedic diagnostic tests are designed to detect colorectal, cervical, breast, bladder, lung and other cancers.
BioLight's leading investors, holding about 45% of BioLight's shares, are Mr. Israel Makov, Chairman of Sun Pharmaceuticals, former CEO and President of Teva Pharmaceuticals and former Chairman of Given Imaging; Mr. Dilip Shanghvi, founder and managing director of Sun Pharmaceuticals, India's largest pharmaceutical company; and Mr. Dan Oren, founder and CEO of Dexcel Pharma, the second-largest pharmaceutical manufacturer in Israel.
For more information please visit the company's website at http://www.bio-light.co.il.
CONTACTS:
BioLight
Itai Bar-Natan, CFO (itai@bio-light.co.il)
Tel: +972-73-2753400
LHA
Kim Sutton Golodetz (kgolodetz@lhai.com)
+1-(212)-838-3777
or
Bruce Voss (bvoss@lhai.com)
+1-(310)-691-7100
SOURCE BioLight Life Sciences Investments Ltd
