What is OncoDiscover Liquid Biopsy Test
OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test is a simple blood test for detecting Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC) in cancer patients.
The OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test is an in-vitro diagnostic test which is essentially a test done on samples such as blood taken from the human body. The test is absolutely safe since it involves a simple blood draw and can be done multiple times to monitor therapy or cancer status.
The heart of the OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test is the proprietary patented multicomponent kit which is added to the patient blood and selectively binds to the cancer cells.
Presence of Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC) is a clear sign of cancer metastasis.
Advantages
EARLY DETECTION OF CANCER
It is widely accepted that early detection of cancer is key to ensure a better outcome of cancer therapy for patients.
But usually the earliest indication of cancer is due to symptoms (bleeding, lumps, non-healing wound etc) rather than the result of proactive testing.
Since these symptoms are at many times improperly diagnosed or ignored, many patients are diagnosed with cancer only at a later stage.
This makes treatment and recovery difficult for the patient. Cancer metastasis accounts for 90% of cancer deaths in comparison to deaths due to primary tumor.
Thus, it is critical to know at the earliest possible stage about presence or spread of cancer.
In a normal ‘healthy’ human being or in a person detected with cancerous tumor, the OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test can be used to identify presence of cancer and the extent of cancer metastasis.
This will ensure that awareness of cancer presence is at the earliest possible stage and may result in better outcome during treatment.
The OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test can detect cancer earlier and faster than traditional tests.
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DETECTION OF CANCER RELAPSE
Cancer Relapse can happen weeks, months, or even years after the primary or original cancer was treated. Relapse happens because cancer cells which escape from the primary tumor and invade the blood stream to form a new tumor near or at a distance to the primary tumor.
It is impossible for doctors to predict when the cancer will relapse.
Conventional tests have limited sensitivity or are difficult to perform on a regular basis to track the recurrence of cancer.
Similar to the primary cancer, in many cases detection of relapse is symptomatic or the recurrence is misdiagnosed as some other condition.
Cancer relapse is bad news because the cancer may have spread to other parts of the body, may be aggressive or widespread.
The OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test is the earliest and most accurate predictor of cancer recurrence.
Continuous monitoring of cancer status (every 3-4 months) ensure that any relapse of cancer is caught early enough for the patient to seek treatment.
Regular testing with the OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy Test ensures peace of mind.
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REAL TIME MONITORING OF CANCER THERAPY
There is growing evidence to suggest that due to the heterogeneous nature of the tumor solid tissue biopsies often fail to reveal the true character of the disease. Repeated biopsies are not practical due to the painful nature of the procedure. Many times due to the tumor being present at difficult to reach organ, a biopsy may be unfeasible.
PET/CT scan is the gold standard when it comes to tumor identification in the body. But the iodine-based contrast dye used for the CT component can cause side effects, including nausea, vomiting, headache, itching, flushing, and mild rash. Many patients are intolerant to the test and cannot undergo the scan multiple times.
The OncoDiscover® Liquid Biopsy test is a minimally invasive test which can be performed multiple times as it needs very little blood volume. Thus this test is an excellent tool for therapy monitoring.
The test can be performed at multiple time points such as during initial checkup, pre surgery, post surgery, post chemotherapy and during follow up Since Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC) present in patient blood are enumerated (counted) by this test, it becomes a quantitative benchmark to monitor disease progression and therapy effectiveness.