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Biotech / Medical : Matritech (NASDAQ - NMPS) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John McCarthy who wrote (561)	2/15/1998 8:33:00 PM
From: John McCarthy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 849

Colon reminder .........FYI Info from NMPS ........... Market Size - Body Counts ------------------------------- Colorectal cancers are the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States killing more than 55,000 people each year. The company estimates that the prevalence of colon cancer outside the United States exceeds 1.5 million people. Existing Colon test ---------------------------------- showed that Matritech's diagnostic assay for colorectal cancer was more than twice as sensitive as the only FDA-approved, blood-based colon cancer clinical assay, carcinoembryonic antigen assay (CEA) in identifying early-stage colorectal cancer (Dukes A, B1,B2). The study demonstrated CEA to be only 33 percent sensitive (8/24) in identifying patients with early-stage colorectal cancer. The Matritech test was 71 percent sensitive (17/24) in identifying early-stage colorectal cancer. WW Market Size - $ Size -------------------------- Annual worldwide sales of CEA are estimated by Matritech to exceed $100 million in sales. Per Bill's post, we're coming to bat soon. Regards, John

To: John McCarthy who wrote (561)	2/15/1998 8:46:00 PM
From: John McCarthy	Respond to of 849

Colon Info .... Additional ...... Go here ... or read below -------------------------- cancer.org Mutation discovered that causes colorectal cancer; test developed to detect it. Summary: Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute have identified a genetic mutation that causes colorectal cancer in families. Johns Hopkins is offering testing for this mutation. A new genetic mutation has been found that can double the risk of developing familial colon cancer (FCC) in carriers over their lifetime. FCC accounts for an estimated 15-50 percent of the approximately 130,000 cases of colorectal cancers diagnosed each year. The researchers, at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, have found the mutation in over 6 percent of Ashkenazi Jewish people studied, making it the most common known cancer gene found in a specific population. Ashkenazim (Jews of Eastern European ancestry) have a lifetime risk of colorectal cancer of 9 to 15 percent; for those that have this mutation, their lifetime risk of developing colon cancer is estimated to be 18 to 30 percent. The researchers have developed a test to detect this new mutation and encourage any Ashkenazi Jewish person with a family history of the disease to be tested. The test, currently available only at Johns Hopkins, costs approximately $200. HOW WAS THE STUDY PERFORMED AND WHAT DID IT FIND? The researchers initially identified the mutation in a single Ashkenazi Jewish person. Believing the genetic similarity of this group may provide insights into FCC, the researchers then studied 766 Ashkenazim and found the mutation in over 6 percent of those studied. Next, the researchers studied blood and tissue samples of 211 Ashkenazi Jewish colon cancer patients. They found that one in six of those patients who developed cancer prior to age 66, and one in eight of those who developed colorectal cancer at any age, had the mutation. The mutation was also found in nearly one-third of Ashkenazi patients with a family history of colorectal cancer. HOW DOES THE MUTATION INCREASE THE RISK OF CANCER? The mutation occurs in a cancer-causing gene called APC. APC has previously been linked to a less common form of hereditary colon cancer known as familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), in which affected family members develop hundreds of precancerous polyps. Cancer will almost certainly develop in at least one of these polyps during the lifetime of an affected person. This most recently discovered mutation is different from the one that causes FAP. The mutation itself causes no harm. According to Kenneth Kinzler, PhD, associate professor of oncology at Johns Hopkins and co-author of the study, the mutation causes the substitution of base, adenine, for another, thymine. Bases are the small molecules that form the letters of the genetic code and are linked together to form DNA. While causing no direct effect on the DNA or the protein molecule it encodes, this substitution does make it difficult for cells to accurately copy the DNA. Copying of a colorectal cell's DNA occurs every time it reproduces to replace worn out cells. An error in this process can then lead to a more serious mutation, one that is similar to mutations in people with FAP. It is this second mutation that actually causes the colorectal cancer to form. WHAT CAN INDIVIDUALS DO? Colon cancer is a disease that, if found at an early stage, responds well to treatment. Therefore, if an Ashkenazi individual has a family history of colorectal cancer (defined as having at least one parent, sibling, or child with a history of either colorectal cancer or precancerous polyps), he or she should begin colorectal cancer screenings at a younger age and have these more often than people at average colorectal cancer risk in order to detect cancer at its earliest, most curable stage. A test is available for this specific mutation, and high-risk individuals should consider obtaining it. (Call 410-955-4041 for information about the test.) Genetic counseling should be obtained by anyone considering the test. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS FINDING? More intensive screenings of people found to carry the mutation could find precancerous polyps and early cancers which can be successfully treated. The researchers expect this would prevent about 90% of colorectal cancer deaths in this population. For further information on colorectal cancer, call the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345. Source: Laken SJ, Petersen GM, Gruber SB, et al. Familial colon cancer in Ashkenazim due to a hypermutable tract in APC. Nature Genetics, 1997:17;79-83.

To: John McCarthy who wrote (561)	2/15/1998 8:51:00 PM
From: John McCarthy	Respond to of 849

Colon competition ....... FYI I own IMMU. They just fired Mallinckrodt last week. Some are guessing that IMMU will use Lily to market CEA-SCAN. I think NMPS should be able to beat them in the market place. Regards, John ========================================== FDA Approves Mallinckrodt's Colorectal Cancer Test July 02, 1996 ST. LOUIS (AP) - A colorectal cancer test by Mallinckrodt Group Inc. has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The test was invented by Immunomedics Inc., a small drug company in Morris Plains, N.J. Mallinckrodt holds the U.S. and European marketing rights. Immunomedics said 55,000 Americans die each year from colorectal cancer, and 138,000 new cases of the disease are discovered each year. The test, called CEA-Scan, is an injectable liquid containing a radioactive element that attaches to cancerous tumors. These tumors are then detected by physicians using an electronic camera to highlight the radioisotope. The FDA said this test should be used in conjunction with a CT scan, the current diagnostic standard. When the CT scan - a sophisticated and detailed type of X-ray - and CEA-Scan are used together, the tumor detection rate was 97 percent effective, Immunomedics said. It is working on similar products for identifying tumors of the breast and lung. The test is the company's first product. Mallinckrodt already makes and sells OctreoScan, a radioactive drug that highlights cancerous tumors in the stomach, lungs and thyroid. It is studying other cancer detection uses for this product. The approval of CEA-Scan was announced Monday.