RaDaR(R) Assay Demonstrates Clinical Potential for Helping Oncologists Determine Whether or Not Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer Patients Undergo Radical Surgery

Newly-published data shows a strong link between tumor DNA circulating in blood and patient responses to investigational neoadjuvant treatment with immune therapies

FT. MYERS, FL / ACCESSWIRE / February 6, 2023 / NeoGenomics, Inc. (NASDAQ:NEO), a leading provider of oncology testing and global contract research services, today announced results of a new study of the RaDaR^® assay in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer immediately following treatment with a combination of the immune checkpoint inhibitors in the neoadjuvant setting. Plasma and urine collected from the patients during treatment was analyzed.

The RaDaR assay is a personalized, highly-sensitive sequencing test for the detection of minimal residual disease (MRD) and recurrence. MRD is the trace amounts of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) that remain after surgery or other cancer treatment. The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, found that the absence of ctDNA in plasma - as detected by RaDaR - was associated with patient responses to treatment prior to surgery offering the possibility of avoiding aggressive surgery that removes the patient's bladder (also known as a cystectomy).

"Most patients with muscle-invasive urothelial cancer are at a high risk for recurrence and most will undergo cystectomy that results in the removal of the bladder," said Vishal Sikri, President, Advanced Diagnostics, NeoGenomics. "If possible, preserving a patient's bladder is clearly an important outcome if new approaches to neoadjuvant treatments are successful. By determining if a patient has responded well to neoadjuvant treatment, RaDaR provides necessary insights to help oncologists decide whether a patient may be a candidate for bladder-sparing treatment strategies."

The new data are part of the second cohort of the Phase 1b/2a NABUCCO (Neo-Adjuvant Bladder Urothelial Carcinoma COmbination-immunotherapy) trial, which investigated patient responses to neoadjuvant treatment with a CTLA-4 inhibitor (ipilimumab) in combination with a PDL1 inhibitor (nivolumab) among patients with locoregionally-advanced urothelial cancer. In both cohorts, RaDaR assay was used before and during neoadjuvant therapy as well as pre-surgery to assessed ctDNA in urine and blood plasma to determine patient response to treatment.