Lifeline Updates Nipplescope Breast Cancer Detection System
RENO, Nev.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 8, 2003--Jim Holmes, CEO of
Lifeline BioTechnologies, Inc. (OTC:LBTT) announced today that he and
Louis Keith, MD, Ph.D., Lifeline's Medical Director, recently visited
the London research site where the Company's duct-microendoscope is
undergoing clinical testing.
Holmes and Keith held discussions with Dr. K. Mokbel, who has been
investigating Lifeline's nipple endoscope since January 2003.
Dr. Mokbel stated that women presenting with pathological nipple
discharge usually have a mammogram and/or ultrasound scan. Ten percent
of these women will have an abnormality on imaging which can be
biopsied using image-guided needle biopsy. The remaining women are
usually advised to have duct excision. Nipple endoscopy can avoid the
need for duct excision surgery in 85% of such patients (assumptions:
90% success rate for nipple endoscopy and 5% of patients will require
duct excision anyway after successful nipple endoscopy). Furthermore,
nipple endoscopy is more likely to show the cause of pathological
nipple discharge than duct excision, as the cause is more than 4 cm
away from the nipple in 20% of the cases. This means that nipple
endoscopy is more likely to detect cancer. Overall, approximately 2.5%
of women undergoing duct excision for pathological nipple discharge
will be found to have cancer.
Dr. Keith stated that in cases where patients present with a
nipple discharge, the physician must establish if the discharge is
associated with significant underlying pathology. It must be
determined if the discharge is spontaneous or induced; whether it
arises from a single duct or multiple ducts, and whether it is from
one breast or both breasts.
Drs. Mokbel and Keith both agree the being able to visually
inspect the ducts of the breast with the added advantage of obtaining
cells from ducts for cytological examination before the decision to do
subsequent surgery would be a significant step toward improved breast
cancer detection.
According to Dr. William Reeves, Lifeline's President and founder,
nipple discharge accounts for approximately 5% of all referrals to
breast cancer clinics in our country and it is a frightening symptom
because of a woman's fear of breast cancer. Reeves went on to say,
nipple discharge and patient age are certainly important predictors of
potential malignancy. In one study, 3% of patients younger than 40,
10% of patients between 40 and 60, and 32% of patients older than 60
who presented with nipple discharge as their only symptom, were found
to have cancer.
CEO Holmes commented, "With this progress, we are moving from a
clinical prototype to a production model and preparing to obtain a CE
mark for European marketing of the nipple endoscope later this year."
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In
particular, when used in the preceding discussion, the words
"believes," "expects," "intends," "will," "anticipated," or "may," and
similar conditional expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Act and are
subject to the safe harbor created by the Act. Except for historical
information, all of the statements, expectations and assumptions
contained in the foregoing are forward-looking statements that involve
a number of risks and uncertainties. The Company takes no obligation
to update or correct forward-looking statements.
--30--CA/se*
CONTACT: Lifeline BioTechnologies, Inc.
Jim Holmes, 775-852-3222
jholmes777@aol.com
or
Investor Relations Contact:
STOCK ENTERPRISES, INC.
Jim Stock, 702-614-0003
KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA NEVADA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: PHARMACEUTICAL MEDICAL DEVICES MEDICAL
SOURCE: Lifeline BioTechnologies, Inc.
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