ValiRx (LON:VAL) has received a patent in Japan for the diagnosis and monitoring of patients for B-cell lymphomas using biomarkers.
With this grant, ValiRx now has additional biomarker patent protection in Japan, Europe and Australia and the US.
The patent is based on the NAV3 gene biomarker, which detect pre-malignant cells at the stage where tumour development is only about to start.
ValiRx said the biomarkers separate types of B-cell lymphomas into different prognostic groups, which identifies patients at increased risk of developing aggressive forms of B-cell lymphomas.
It can also test for cancer cells in tissue or samples, only a few malignant cells from samples and biopsy types are required.
Traditonally, early stage cancer cell detection has been difficult, but the NAV3 analytical method allows visualisation of the actual cancer cells.
Satu Vainikka, ValiRx’s chief executive, said the use of biomarkers in oncology therapeutics is a key, growing and essential market for early diagnosis and tumour onset.
"The patent grant also builds very nicely on our recent complementary and revenue enhancing acquisition of the TRAC technology and method, which enable the efficient screening of a large number of drug candidates.”