Business
Cancer testing & diagnosis suffers sharp downturn
Cancer testing & diagnosis suffers sharp downturn.
About this update from Diaceutics Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \n \n RNS Number : 2335L\n Diaceutics PLC\n 29 April 2020\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Cancer Testing and Diagnosis Suffers Sharp Downturn, finds Diaceutics\n \n \n - \n \n Diaceutics data analytics shows 31% drop in the number of newly-diagnosed patients with lung cancer\n \n \n \n - Data also shows decrease in the number of colorectal, breast and ovarian cancers patients diagnosed\n \n \n - 14% drop in newly-diagnosed patients with acute myeloid leukemia\n \n \n - Insights based on real-time information from Diaceutics' data lake based in the US\n \n \n \n Parsippany, New Jersey, 29 April 2020 - \n \n Diaceutics PLC, (AIM: DXRX), the precision diagnostic commercialization company, today announces research results from its COVID-19 oncology tracker, which \n shows the impact of the crisis on cancer testing and diagnosis in the US. The analysis, based on real-time data taken from the organization\n ′\n s data lake, shows that there has been a sharp downturn in both biomarker testing and cancer diagnosis rates between February and March of this year.\n \n \n The figures, which have been tracked monthly since January 2019, provide an insight into the impact that COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdown measures being implemented across the United States are having on cancer patient care. Diaceutics found that compared to the month of February 2020, March saw a 31% drop in the number of patients being diagnosed with lung cancer. Testing rates for related biomarkers also decreased, with reductions ranging between 7% (KRAS) and 13% (EGFR). With regard to EGFR, Diaceutics estimates that there were nearly 4,000 fewer tests performed in March alone when compounding the reduced number of patients diagnosed and reduction in testing rates.\n \n \n Diaceutics' COVID-19 oncology tracker also revealed a 14% drop in the number of new patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer during that same time period. The insights show that testing rates for biomarkers related to this form of cancer decreased as well. BRAF was down by 9%, while MSI/MMR was down by 8% and RAS was down by 6%. In the hematological setting, there was a 14% drop in newly-diagnosed patients with acute myeloid leukemia between February and March, with FLT3 (12%), IDH1 (11%) and IDH2 (12%) testing rates all dropping.\n \n \n Diaceutics found that the nu...