ANGLE PLC (LON:AGL; OTCQX:ANPCY) said its liquid biopsy was integral to a study assessing the progression of non-small cell lung (NSCL) cancer and understanding why the disease may become resistant to a particular line of treatment.
Researchers at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens used ANGLE' s Parsortix system to assess the circulating tumour cells of people with the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation of NSCL treated with AstraZeneca’s Tagrisso.
The cells were analysed for biomarkers including epithelial, mesenchymal/epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), stem cell and PD‑L1.
The study showed that Parsortix was able to isolate circulating tumour cells (CTCs) from patients with a mesenchymal/EMT type.
This is clinically significant as mesenchymal/EMT biomarkers were present in samples in 60% of patients at baseline and 80% following one cycle of Tagrisso.
EMT may be a key mechanism in tumour cell survival, invasion, metastasis, and drug resistance in a range of cancers, ANGLE said.
It is also implicated in resistance to the tyrosine kinase inhibitor of the type given to patients taking part in the Athens study.
At the same time, a statistically significant increase in PD-L1 positive CTCs was observed at disease progression.
ANGLE founder and chief executive, Andrew Newland, said the research, which analysed blood samples taken from 30 cancer sufferers during the course of treatment, demonstrated the dynamic and diverse nature of non-small cell lung cancer.
It also underlined the need for “serial liquid biopsies to provide vital information on disease progression and drug resistance”, he added.
“The ability of the Parsortix system to capture mesenchymal, as well as epithelial cells, offers ANGLE a critical advantage over other liquid biopsy approaches in providing this information in clinical trials,” Newland explained.
“We look forward to harnessing Parsortix's unique capabilities as we continue to make strong progress with the establishment of our new laboratories to support the use of the Parsortix system for pharma services and subsequent deployment for clinical use.”