In 2017, almost 1.7 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the United States alone(1). While a positive diagnosis can be emotionally devastating, the financial impact of cancer diagnosis cannot be ignored. According to the latest statistics, almost $87.8 billion was spent in 2014 on cancer-related healthcare ranging from diagnosis to treatment(1). Since this financial burden impacts not only patients, but insurance companies and taxpayer-funded programs like Medicare, NuView Life Sciences is developing a new kind of platform technology, NV-VPAC1, as a solution to the nationwide cancer cost crisis.
Data from 2014 shows that out-of-pocket expenses for cancer patients totaled more than $4 billion(1). Many of these expenses are obvious: insurance premiums and prescription medications are predictable costs for people living with cancer. However, patients often face unexpected costs, like travel expenses and childcare, that are incurred during the course of treatment and therapy(2).
Unfortunately, many patients incur both financial and emotional expenses as a result of misdiagnosis. For example, many women who receive a false-positive breast cancer screening results lose faith in the diagnostic abilities of their doctors and of the technology used to make the diagnosis(3). These women also report higher levels of anxiety, fear, concern, and shock after receiving being misdiagnosed(3, 4).
To help combat both the financial and emotional costs of cancer diagnosis, a new technology platform, NV-VPAC1, is currently being developed by NuView Life Sciences. NV-VPAC1 is a series of peptide analogs that target and bind to a specific receptor found on the surface of cancer cells(5). This receptor is not located on normal, healthy cells, making it the perfect target for NV-VPAC1 to be able to simply and accurately identify cancerous cells(5).
Dr. Matthew Thakur, one of the inventors of NV-VPAC1, says, “By attaching an imaging agent to NV-VPAC1, we’re able utilize positron emission tomography (PET) to see where it travels in the body and binds to receptors on the surface of cancer cells. This is a precision medicine approach makes NV-VPAC1 the perfect choice for next-generation cancer diagnostic tests.”
Even without using PET, NV-VPAC1 could be used to detect cancer cells in other bodily fluids. Because of the technology’s ability to accurately bind to specific cancer receptors, it could be possible to use it to identify cancer cells in blood, urine, saliva, and cerebral spinal fluid samples(5). This process of diagnosis could save thousands of patients from invasive biopsies and other diagnostic testing methods that cost both patients and the nation’s healthcare system millions each year.
In the future, researchers anticipate that NV-VPAC1 could be used to deliver various cancer treatments, including chemotherapeutic agents, directly to cancer cells. Using the same receptors on the surface of these cells, NV-VPAC1 may be able to deliver precisely targeted doses of chemotherapy while preserving the health of surrounding, normal tissues.
Paul Crowe, founder of NuView Life Sciences, says, “This technology could be instrumental in conclusively diagnosing various types of cancer while saving patients, families, and our healthcare system millions each year. By providing a way to accurately diagnose patients the first time, we hope to relieve some of the financial burden associated with cancer, while also helping patients avoid the unnecessary stress and anxiety that is so often related to cancer.”
About NuView Life Sciences:
Founded in 2005, NuView Life Sciences is a biotechnology company located in Park City, Utah, working to improve the way cancer is diagnosed and treated in our modern healthcare system. NuView is focused on creating precision cancer diagnostics and therapeutics to improve patient outcomes while reducing healthcare costs through the development and clinical application of its exclusive peptide analog technology, NV-VPAC1.
Led by a team of industry experts with decades of combined experience in healthcare and medical imaging technologies, NuView is poised to change how we look for and respond to cancer. To learn more about NuView Life Sciences, please visit http://nuviewinfo.com/site/3/.
Sources:
1. The Costs of Cancer: Addressing Patient Costs. American Cancer Society. https://www.acscan.org/sites/default/files/Costs%20of%20Cancer%20-%20Final%20Web.pdf. Accessed June 22, 2017.
2. Understanding the Costs Related to Cancer Care. Cancer.net. http://www.cancer.net/navigating-cancer-care/financial-considerations/understanding-costs-related-cancer-care. Accessed June 22, 2017.
3. Women’s Experiences of Inaccurate Breast Cancer Screening Results: A Systematic Review and Qualitative Meta-synthesis. Ontario Health Technology Assessment Series. 2016;16:1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4947976/. Accessed June 22, 2017.
4. Coping with the emotional effects of cancer. Cancer Council Western Australia. https://www.cancerwa.asn.au/patients/coping-with-cancer/emotional-effects/. Accessed June 22, 2017.
5. NV-VPAC1 Platform Technology. NuView Life Sciences. http://nuviewinfo.com/site/3/vpac1/. Accessed June 22, 2017.
