Recent test results from EKF Diagnostics’ collaboration with the Institute of Life Sciences at the University of Swansea, UK, demonstrate the effectiveness of the PointMan DNA enrichment technology for isolating and characterizing low-level DNA mutations in blood. The manufacturer says such sensitivity opens the possibility of using a simple blood test to screen and diagnose different cancers, as well as monitor the efficacy of anti-cancer therapies. PointMan is a real-time PCR technology that provides reliable and extremely sensitive detection for cancer mutations. It is highly efficient in amplifying the target sequence of interest, whilst suppressing amplification of the wild-type sequence.
The manufacturer says a previous test successfully detected circulating free DNA (cfDNA) mutations from melanoma patients. Further studies were carried out on blood samples from endometrial and lung cancer patients, archived in the Wales Cancer Bank. The latest results demonstrated the sensitivity of PointMan in detecting cfDNA mutations – BRAF (endometrial cancer) and EGFR (lung cancer) – which could therefore serve as a test for these biomarkers in the early detection of these cancers. EKF Diagnostics
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