Clarient Launches New Gene Mutation Test to Help Select Therapy for Non-Small Cell L...( Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Muta...),Health

Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Mutation Test May Be Key To Identifying Patient Response to Drug Therapies

ALISO VIEJO, Calif., June 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Clarient, Inc. (Nasdaq: CLRT), a premier anatomic pathology and molecular testing services resource for pathologists, oncologists, and the pharmaceutical industry, today announced the launch of a new gene mutation test that can help physicians select the proper therapy for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The test, called epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation, has been validated as a laboratory-developed test and is now available to physicians and their patients.

"Our new EGFR mutation test can be used as a predictive molecular biomarker to explain why a subset of patients with non-small cell lung cancer may respond to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapies," said Clarient Chief Executive Officer Ron Andrews. Data from new and ongoing studies confirming the importance of EGFR mutation testing was presented at last week's annual American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting. "This information can help pathologists and oncologists improve the overall management of this difficult disease."

Lung cancer, the most common cause of cancer-related death in men and the second most common cause of cancer-related death in women (after breast cancer), is responsible for 1.3 million deaths annually worldwide. According to the National Cancer Institute, there were more than 215,000 patients diagnosed with lung cancer in 2008. With treatment, the five-year survival rate is approximately 14 percent. NSCLC accounts for approximately 85 percent of all lung cancer cases.

"Most of the data and expert commentary at this year's ASCO meeting concluded that lung cancer was not just one single disease but a number of
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