Exiqon Diagnostics, Inc. Partners With MedTrust Online to Promote KRAS Mutation Analysis and Other Innovative Molecular Oncology Diagnostic Services to Oncologists
TUSTIN, Calif., May 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Exiqon Diagnostics, announced today a strategic commercial partnership with MedTrust Online, an innovative, comprehensive internet based solution provider for oncologists that offers clinically useful knowledge on the latest topics in cancer treatment. Exiqon Diagnostics, a leader in individualizing cancer care through novel molecular and cell-based (the Oncotech EDR(R) Assay) clinical laboratory services, will become a content partner by providing a comprehensive suite of oncology molecular diagnostics services to MedTrust Online's Oncocentric oncology portal.
MedTrust Online will add Exiqon Diagnostics service offerings, extensive clinical studies, insurance/billing information, order forms, and live forum case studies available to MedTrust's growing oncology health care provider user base consisting of thousands of medical, gynecologic and surgical oncologists as well as pathologists and support staff nationwide.
"We are pleased to add Exiqon Diagnostics to the growing list of molecular diagnostic companies providing content on the MedTrust Online oncology portal," said Matt Sargent, Vice President of Molecular Diagnostics for MedTrust Online. "Molecular diagnostic testing options and drug reimbursement data are the two most heavily requested topics from our oncology user base. Our Oncocentric portal allows oncologists to rapidly find the information that they need on new molecular diagnostics to better practice personalized medicine."
"Partnering with MedTrust offers a unique opportunity to present molecular and cell-based testing options and information to medical oncologists in an unbiased and confidential forum," stated Erik Holmlin, Chief Commercial Officer of Exiqon. "We believe MedTrust can provide patient care teams with important testing information that will help them make better informed and individualized treatment decisions for their patients."
About MedTrust Online LLC
MedTrust Online LLC, www.medtrust-online.com, headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, provides oncologists with clinically useful technology applications and solutions. MedTrust Online brings together experts in Oncology, information technology, computational biology, pharmaceutical drug development, and personalized medicine to capture, organize, analyze, integrate and present the most up-to-date medical facts from a vast array of sources. This data is provided to doctors in a comprehensive yet concise way unavailable anywhere else.
About Exiqon Diagnostics
Exiqon Diagnostics (the tradename for Oncotech, Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of Exiqon A/S), is a leader in personalizing medicine for cancer patients. As a CLIA and CAP-certified laboratory, Exiqon Diagnostics develops and performs novel molecular and cell-based oncology assays to help physicians individualize and optimize treatment selection for their patients. In addition to the Extreme Drug Resistance (EDR(R)) Assay, Exiqon Diagnostics offers an extensive test menu of prognostic and predictive molecular oncology biomarkers using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), flow cytometry, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and other cutting-edge technologies.
For further information please visit www.exiqondiagnostics.com.
About Exiqon
Exiqon is a biotech company with activities in three business areas where the company's technologies provide a competitive advantage: Sale of diagnostic tests (Exiqon Diagnostics), sale of innovative research products for miRNA research (Exiqon Life Sciences), and in contract research together with pharmaceutical companies (Exiqon Pharma Services).
Exiqon is dedicated to personalizing the treatment selection for cancer patients. The aim is to optimize the use of existing medicine and avoid unnecessary and non-effective treatment. By using molecular diagnostic tests that analyze the genetic profile of each patient's tumor, treatment selection can be optimized for individuals. Exiqon is uniquely positioned to develop such new diagnostic tests. Exiqon already markets diagnostic tests that based on fresh tumor tissue enable doctors to test whether their patients are resistant to one or more of the chemotherapies offered to treat these patients and help them select an efficacious treatment.
Exiqon's new molecular diagnostic products are based on the LNA(TM) technology that enables testing on fixed tissue. Launch of the first molecular diagnostic product was announced in December 2008. A number of new products will follow in the years ahead. Using the LNA(TM) technology is what has allowed Exiqon to establish a position for itself as one of the market's leading providers of research products for gene expression analysis. These research products are used by university scientists and in the pharmaceutical industry around the world to make groundbreaking discoveries about the correlation between gene activity and the development various diseases.
Exiqon is also collaborating with pharmaceutical companies in their effort to develop new medicines based on biomarkers (Personalized Medicine). Exiqon has more than 200 employees and is listed on the NASDAQ OMX in Copenhagen and categorized as a biotech company (Small Cap+). Exiqon is financed until expected breakeven in 2011.
For further information, please visit www.exiqon.com.
CONTACT: Matt Sargent, Vice President, Molecular Diagnostics of MedTrust
Online, +1-480-603-9209, msargent@medtrust-online.com; or R. Erik Holmlin,
Chief Commercial Officer of Exiqon, +1-714-566-0470, eholmlin@exiqon.com
Web site: http://www.medtrust-online.com/
http://www.exiqondiagnostics.com/
http://www.exiqon.com/