Center for Molecular Medicine Among First to Offer New FDA-Approved Test to Aid in Treatment of Prost...( GRAND RAPIDS Mich. Feb. 28 /- The...)

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Feb. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Center for Molecular Medicine (CMM) today announced it is one of the first laboratories in the nation to offer a new, FDA-approved test that will aid in the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer.

The CMM (http://www.cmmdx.org) is offering the CellSearch(TM) System from Veridex (http://www.veridex.com) to physicians as a vital new tool in managing patients with metastatic prostate cancer (MPC). The CMM made CellSearch testing services available to physicians last year to help inform treatment of metastatic breast and colorectal cancer.

"This newest addition to our cutting-edge menu of diagnostic services gives physicians another tool for better managing their patients' cancer, this time prostate cancer," said CMM Executive Director Dr. Daniel H. Farkas. "In just one year, the CMM has made available to this community tests that detect and manage breast, colorectal and prostate cancers in a more proactive and efficient way than has ever been possible. It's exciting and we're pleased to serve as a unique medical resource."

The CellSearch System identifies and counts circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in a blood sample to predict progression-free and overall-survival in patients, and can do so earlier than the current standard of care. Testing for CTCs with the CellSearch System, in conjunction with other clinical methods for monitoring, can help physicians assess disease progression, thereby guiding more informed care decisions earlier.

The CellSearch System is the first diagnostic test to automatically identify and count CTCs, cancer cells that detach from solid tumors and enter the bloodstream. The system's specificity, sensitivity and reproducibility allow assessment of CTCs as early as the first cycle of treatment to help evaluate disease progression sooner.

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