The medical industry is moving towards precision-based medicine utilizing new targeted diagnostics and therapies to significantly improve patient outcomes in the diagnosis and treatment of leukemia, digestive system tumors, and breast cancer.² Recently, the drive towards precision medicine was expanded with the 21st Century Cures Act, which allocates $4.8 billion in federal funding to initiatives whose shared goal is to match patients to cancer treatments based on their genetic makeup.³ NuView Life Sciences is developing a product platform to provide patients and healthcare providers with new diagnostic and treatment methods to target and effectively treat each unique individual’s cancer.
 
The shift towards precision medicine is being fueled, in part, by decreasing costs utilizing genomic testing and sequencing. When the Human Genome Project, an international scientific research project mapping the sequence of DNA, first began significant sequencing in 1999, the cost to map out the entire worldwide human genome was around $300 million.⁴ Now, whole human genome sequences can be completed for less than $1,500.⁴
 
Paul Crowe, Chairman and CEO of NuView Life Sciences, said, “Patients, families and providers all want new and better options when it comes to diagnosing and effectively treating cancer. It’s not enough to treat a patient with a one-size-fits-all model of care anymore; as we learn more about how an individual’s unique genetic makeup can influence treatment outcomes, people want precision-based options that will give them the most hope for effective diagnosis and treatment.”
 
Genomic sequencing has already been used in cancer diagnostics to evaluate how certain types of tumors might respond to targeted therapies. In one study, researchers sequenced the genes of tumor samples and found that 56% of the tumors had certain genetic abnormalities that might influence the accuracy of the cancer diagnosis and the effectiveness of treatment.⁵
 
As precision medicine continues to advance, patients, along with their loved ones and healthcare providers, can all expect to see the incorporation of genetic testing when selecting personalized, targeted cancer therapies. It’s predicted that over the next five to 10 years, genomic sequencing will be used more often to identify tumors and match patients to highly-effective cancer treatments based on genetic matches.⁶
 
NuView has developed a new technology, NV-VPAC1, that allows precision detection and targeting of cancer cells. NV-VPAC1 consists of a series of peptide analogs that target a specific receptor, VPAC1, that becomes overexpressed on the surface of certain types of cancers, including breast and prostate cancer.
 
NV-VPAC1 has been used in clinical applications as a molecular imaging agents to allow for precise visualization and diagnosis of certain cancers using positron emission tomography (PET). NuView is currently working to develop this technology even further, the NV-VPAC peptide is used as a liquid biopsy whereby shed cancer cells detected in bio-fluids can be visualized under a microscope providing a diagnostic snapshot of the patient's condition versus long term observation. An additional application allowing for the incorporation of specific cancer therapeutic agents that will deliver targeted therapy directly to cancer cells.¹
 
Crowe remarked, “As we better understand the ways in which genetics plays a role in the development of certain cancers, we’re also coming to a better understanding of how new therapies could be used to target specific genetic markers on cancer cells. NuView is already in the process of developing our NV-VPAC1 technology platform to create precisely targeted products that will deliver personalized treatments to an individual and will be more effective than traditional treatment methods.”
 
References
¹NuView Life Sciences VPAC1 platform technology for PET imaging and in vitro diagnosis. NuView Life Sciences. http://nuviewinfo.com/site/3/vpac1/
²Precision medicine advances diagnosis and treatment of children with brain tumors. News-Medical Life Sciences. http://www.news-medical.net/news/20170120/Precision-medicine-advances-diagnosis-and-treatment-of-children-with-brain-tumors.aspx
³How Precision Medicine Could Be A Lifesaver For Kids With Brain Cancer. Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/sites/arleneweintraub/2017/01/19/how-precision-medicine-could-be-a-lifesaver-for-kids-with-brain-cancer/#10fb53493d64
⁴The Cost of Sequencing a Human Genome. National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institute of Health. https://www.genome.gov/sequencingcosts/
⁵Precision medicine advances pediatric brain tumor diagnosis and treatment. EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-01/dci-pma011717.php
⁶Precision Medicine Gives People With Cancer New Hope in 2017. Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2017/01/18/precision-medicine-gives-people-with-cancer-new-hope-in-2017/#778b02ce2aa7