ANGLE PLC (AIM:AGL, OTCQX:ANPCY) has completed two major projects for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE:AZN), expanding the use of its Parsortix liquid biopsy system to support clinical trials in prostate and multiple cancer types.
The system isolates cancer cells from a simple blood sample, providing a non-invasive way to monitor how a patient’s disease is responding to treatment. This contrasts with traditional tissue biopsies, which are invasive and not always feasible to repeat.
The Surrey-based diagnostics firm announced on Friday that it had finalised development work on two assays - one for detecting the androgen receptor in prostate cancer, and another assessing DNA damage response by identifying micronuclei in circulating tumour cells.
AZ has now approved both tests for use in patient sample analysis.
ANGLE said these advances would allow it to support large-scale clinical trials for the pharmaceutical group. The company is also adding both assays to its commercial offering, making them available to other drug developers via its clinical laboratory.
Chief executive Andrew Newland said: "Successful completion of the AstraZeneca assay development projects is a key milestone for the company in progressing our aim for Parsortix-based CTC analysis to be widely adopted for new and existing drugs to identify the right drug for the right patient at the right time.
"There is a clear business case for AstraZeneca and other large pharma to expand their markets for existing drugs by identifying patients expressing the target biomarker on CTCs, as biomarker status can change over time and impact response to treatment."
The company has also wrapped up a separate contract with Eisai, the Japanese pharmaceutical company, analysing patient samples in a Phase 2 trial of the experimental breast cancer treatment BB-1701.
In that study, ANGLE’s HER2 assay showed that it could detect changes in HER2 status over time - an important marker for treatment decisions. The company processed two blood samples from each patient at different time points and found consistent results as well as measurable changes in cancer cell characteristics following treatment.
While Eisai has opted not to take BB-1701 forward and returned development rights to its partner BlissBio, ANGLE said it had developed “a very good working relationship” with Eisai, which may lead to new collaborations.
BlissBio, meanwhile, has confirmed its intention to continue developing the drug. ANGLE said it was seeking to engage with the company to support the next stage of testing, although no agreements have been made.
The HER2 testing market, particularly for drugs known as antibody-drug conjugates, is growing rapidly. Industry analysts valued the sector at $9.4bn (£7.4bn) in 2023 and forecast it will rise to $13.2bn by 2030, reflecting strong interest in precision oncology approaches.