TUCSON, Ariz., April 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Ventana
Medical Systems, Inc. (Ventana), a member of
the Roche Group, today announced it has entered into
master collaboration agreement with Astellas Pharma Inc., an
R&D-driven global pharmaceutical company headquartered in
Japan, to develop novel automated
tissue diagnostics in support of therapeutic compounds in
development.
Initial projects related to this agreement will support
early-stage clinical trials for the Astellas therapeutic compound
ASP5878, a novel small-molecule fibroblast growth factor receptor
(FGFR) inhibitor which has been shown to block the kinase
activities of FGFR1, FGFR2, FGFR3 and FGFR4. Ventana will develop,
in parallel, an immunohistochemistry (IHC) test identifying FGF19
in certain solid tumors. Financial terms of this agreement were not
disclosed.
"We are pleased to expand our relationship with Astellas with
this master companion diagnostic agreement, which allows our
collaborative projects to quickly move from early stage biomarker
hypothesis testing to late stage companion diagnostic development
with Astellas' targeted therapies in oncology," said Doug Ward, Vice President, Ventana Companion
Diagnostics.
This pharma collaboration is one of several currently underway
where the Ventana Companion Diagnostics team is delivering patient
stratifying diagnostic tools that help identify those individuals
who are most likely to benefit from specific treatments.
Companion diagnostics (CDx) are tests designed to confirm the
presence of a specific biomarker to assist physicians in selecting
effective therapies for their patients, based on the individual
characteristics of each person. Incorporating a companion
diagnostic strategy into a drug development program may expedite
the drug approval process and help generate more effective
treatments with improved safety profiles for patients.
About Ventana Medical Systems, Inc.
Ventana Medical
Systems, Inc. ("VMSI") (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY), a member of
the Roche Group, innovates and manufactures instruments and
reagents that automate tissue processing and slide staining for
cancer diagnostics. VENTANA products are used in clinical histology
and drug development research laboratories worldwide. The company's
intuitive, integrated staining, workflow management platforms, and
digital pathology solutions optimize laboratory efficiencies to
help reduce errors, support diagnosis and enable informed treatment
decisions by anatomic pathology professionals. Together with Roche,
VMSI is driving Personalized Healthcare through accelerated drug
discovery and the development of companion diagnostics to identify
the patients most likely to respond favorably to specific
therapies.
Visit www.ventana.com to learn more.
VENTANA and the VENTANA logo are trademarks of Roche.
VMSI Media Relations
Jacqueline Bucher
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
Phone: 520-877-7288
e-mail: Jacquie Bucher
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SOURCE Ventana Medical Systems, Inc.