Hologic, a global leader in women’s health, has completed its previously announced acquisition of molecular oncology leader Biotheranostics for approximately $230M. Biotheranostics develops and markets two highly differentiated molecular diagnostic tests for breast and metastatic cancers.
“We are very pleased to complete the acquisition of Biotheranostics and look forward to working with our new colleagues to grow in the large, rapidly expanding oncology space,” said Kevin Thornal, Hologic’s president, Diagnostic Solutions Division. “We are even more excited about the acquisition because last month the National Comprehensive Cancer Network revised its clinical practice guidelines to include Breast Cancer Index as the only gene expression assay to predict benefit from extended endocrine therapy for patients with early-stage hormone-receptor positive breast cancer.”
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network is a not-for-profit alliance of 30 leading cancer centers. Breast Cancer Index is recommended by the NCCN for prediction of which early-stage hormone receptor positive (HR+) breast cancer patients are likely to benefit from extended endocrine therapy.1 Terminating endocrine therapy in those patients unlikely to benefit may save healthcare dollars and reduce patient exposure to challenging side effects of therapy. Conversely, for patients needing prolonged treatment, Breast Cancer Index can provide the confidence of knowing that the treatment is reducing their risk of recurrence. The BCI test is also included in additional clinical practice guidelines for breast cancer, including those from the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Biotheranostics also developed and markets the CancerTYPE ID test, which provides a molecular diagnosis for patients with uncertain or unknown cancers. In advanced cancer that has metastasized, it can be difficult to determine the tumor type and subtype, information that is needed to optimize treatment selection, particularly with advancements in molecular targeted therapies. CTID compares genomic tumor information to a reference database to find the closest match, enabling physicians to design personalized treatment plans for patients with Unknown Primary Cancer and cases with diagnostic ambiguity.
The BCI and CTID tests are laboratory developed tests that are not required to be cleared or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.
