Decreased Breast Cancer Survival Associated With High TRAIL-R2 Expression
For Immediate Release
Date: 7/25/05
Contact : Renee Gaudette (203) 785-2143
New Haven, Conn. - High expression of TRAIL-R2, a cell surface receptor that triggers cell death, has been shown to be associated with a decrease in the survival rates of breast cancer patients according to a study published by Yale Cancer Center researchers in Clinical Cancer Research.
Analyzing 20-year follow-up data from breast cancer patients with an automated quantitative analysis system (AQUAT) to review tissue microarray specimens, the researchers identified increased intensity of TRAIL receptor expression. AQUA™ scores were correlated with clinical and pathologic variables. In addition, TRAIL-R1 and TRAIL-R2 expression were both studied on 95 unmatched normal breast specimens.
Yale researchers concluded that while TRAIL-R1 expression was not associated with survival, high TRAIL-R2 expression strongly correlated with decreased survival.
“A number of TRAIL receptor targeting therapies are currently in clinical development. As with other targeted therapies, it is important to determine which patients are more likely to respond to these therapies,” said Harriet Kluger, MD, author on the study and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Section of Medical Oncology at Yale School of Medicine. “AQUAT allows us to stratify patients based on expression levels of drug targets in an automated, unbiased fashion. This will help us reach our ultimate goal of practicing personalized medicine, by treating patients based on characteristics of individual tumors.”
Co-authors of the study include Mary M. McCarthy, Mario Sznol, Kyle A. DiVito, Robert L. Camp, and David L. Rimm.
Citation: Clinical Cancer Research 2005;11(14) July 15, 2005
About AQUA™
The AQUA™ system measures and localizes disease-specific variations in protein expression within tissue automatically, with a high level of precision. The multi-tissue proteomic analysis system combines fluorescence-based imaging with automated microscopy and high-throughput tissue microarray technologies. HistoRx has exclusively licensed the AQUA™ technology that was developed by two of the company's founders, David Rimm, M.D., Ph.D. and Robert Camp, M.D., Ph.D., both of the Yale University School of Medicine and Yale Cancer Center.
About Yale Cancer Center
Yale Cancer Center is one of a select network of 39 comprehensive cancer centers in the country designated by the National Cancer Institute and the only one in Southern New England. Bringing together the resources of Yale-New Haven Hospital and the Yale University School of Medicine, its mission encompasses patient care, research, cancer prevention and control, community outreach, and education.
About HistoRx
HistoRx is developing the next generation of companion diagnostics to significantly enhance the accuracy of biomarker-driven patient selection and optimize clinical development of targeted therapies. The company's products are based on its, proprietary quantitative tissue-based platform that simultaneously measures multiple biomarkers in a spatial context and enables clinical validation. HistoRx's AQUA™ technology, developed in conjunction with Yale School of Medicine, is a breakthrough solution to the growing need in biotech and pharmaceutical industry to precisely measure changes in expression levels of individual or small groups of proteins (biomarkers) in different stages of disease and in various organs and tissues. To meet this need, the company is providing contract services, while selectively licensing its technologies to leading academic and not-for-profit research institutions. HistoRx is based in New Haven, Conn. For more information, please visit www.historx.com.