Manchester, 17 December 2008, DxS, a personalised medicine company, has won the 2008 Biomedical Company of the Year Award from Bionow. The award follows an excellent year, which saw DxS achieve significant success with its range of products and the establishment of a number of high profile partnerships with drug companies. Bionow is the Northwest Regional Development Agency’s (NWDA) biomedical cluster support group, this prestigious award was sponsored by AstraZeneca/MedImmune.
Dr John Stageman, VP R&D Science Affairs at AstraZeneca, presenting the award, said: “I’m delighted to present this important award to DxS. 2008 has been an exceptional year for the company, not only in securing a number of significant deals with major pharmaceutical companies but also in creating a strong portfolio of novel tests to improve the effectiveness of cancer treatment. We are proud to recognise the achievements of DxS as a pioneering company and we are confident it is now in a position to make a very significant impact on this increasingly important field of medicine.”
Dr Stephen Little, CEO of DxS said: “I am very pleased to accept this award on behalf of DxS. It is excellent news for the company and shows just how far we have come this year. We are in the vanguard of personalised medicine with our cancer companion diagnostics and we anticipate 2009 to be a very exciting year with further products in development.”
DxS is the provider of the world’s first DNA based companion diagnostic. DxS’ TheraScreen: K-RAS kit was launched in January of 2008, it is required by Amgen Inc to allow sale of its colon cancer therapy Vectibix® in Europe. In June it was also announced that the kit can be used to aid oncologists in determining candidate patients for Imclone’s Erbitux®, marketed by Merck KGaA, for determination of best therapeutic practice.
Sales of the TheraScreen: K-RAS kit along with DxS’ EGFR29 clinical diagnostic kit have increased significantly throughout 2008. DxS appointed the world’s largest molecular diagnostic company – Roche Molecular Diagnostics – as its global distributor of diagnostic products in June. 2008 has seen a dramatic rise in the DxS workforce and also an increase in laboratory and office space, with further plans to grow again in 2009.
About DxS
DxS is a personalised medicine company providing molecular diagnostics to aid doctors and drug companies in selecting therapies for patients. Working in partnership with pharmaceutical companies to support the development and sales of targeted cancer therapies by providing biomarkers and companion diagnostics.
DxS has a continually expanding portfolio of cancer mutation products. The TheraScreen® range of CE-marked clinical diagnostic kits can identify genetic tumour mutations that affect how patients respond to cancer therapies, thus enabling doctors to provide the most beneficial treatment. DxS produce two clinical diagnostic kits, K-RAS and EGFR-29.
The TheraScreen: K-RAS Mutation kit is a companion diagnostic for Vectibix® (Amgen) and Erbitux® (Merck KGaA) for the treatment of colorectal cancer. DxS has an exclusive global distribution agreement with Roche Diagnostics for the distribution of the TheraScreen: K-RAS and TheraScreen: EGFR29 Mutation kits.
DxS’ pioneering real-time PCR technology Scorpions® is highly regarded for its proven speed and sensitivity, and is combined with ARMS (allele specific PCR) to develop each unique DxS product. This class-leading technology is also available for licence to diagnostic companies, for research, or for other varied applications.
DxS is a private, venture capital-backed company operating from the heart of Manchester’s Technology Quarter in the UK.
For further information please visit www.dxsdiagnostics.com.
