EPO has been found to have notable adverse effects in some cases, including accelerated tumor growth and death. As a result, healthcare providers must receive special training prior to prescribing EPO, potentially limiting access and treatment effectiveness for their patients.
"Molecular Health's latest patent has the opportunity to further address an unmet need in the treatment of millions of cancer patients suffering with anemia," said Lutz Voelker, Chief Executive Officer of Molecular Health.
The granting of this latest patent in Europe further develops the opportunity for alleviating treatment toxicities and improving the benefit of EPO therapy in cancer patients. Combined, Molecular Health´s multiple patents detail methods of determining whether a cancer patient is suitable for EPO therapy inter alia by identifying the level of expression of a novel erythropoietin receptor, EPHB4. Molecular Health also holds corresponding patents in the United States and Canada.
Molecular Health is exploring several commercialization channels for offering a predictive test based upon its patented methods.
Source: Molecular Health