SAGA expands research collaboration with University College London Cancer Institute

LUND, Sweden — /June 17, 2021/ — SAGA Diagnostics AB, a cancer liquid biopsy and genomic testing company focused on precision oncology and non-invasive ultrasensitive monitoring of cancer patients, today announced an expanded research collaboration with Professor Charles Swanton, at the University College London (UCL) Cancer Institute.

Last year, SAGA and UCL entered into a research collaboration on a limited number of patients. With the newly signed agreement, SAGA will utilize its proprietary ultrasensitive SAGAsafe^® assays for detection of a panel of mutations in EGFR and other genes and perform analyses on several hundred clinical tissue samples from the Cancer Research UK-funded UCL-sponsored TRACERx* and PEACE** studies. The TRACERx study focuses on cancer evolution in lung cancer patients and tracking the evolutionary trajectory of the disease from diagnosis through to relapse. The PEACE study accepts post-mortem tissue donation for comprehensive cancer research with the aim to benefit future patients.

We were impressed by the performance of SAGA’s technology and intrigued by the initial findings from our first research collaboration, and so we are very excited about expanding the study with more patients and samples.
– Professor Charles Swanton, FRS FRCP FMedSci, Chair, Personalised Cancer Medicine, University College London, Co-Director, CRUK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence, Senior Group Leader, Cancer Evolution and Genome Instability Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute

SAGAsafe^® is a patented improvement of digital PCR that enables approximately 100-fold increased sensitivity compared to competitor methods, and can be used to quantify mutations in tissue samples as well as liquid biopsies such as blood plasma with unprecedented performance. The analyses will be run in the SAGA Diagnostics central laboratory in Lund, Sweden.

We are honored that Professor Swanton and his team chose to expand and deepen their collaboration with us. We are looking forward to contribute to the TRACERx and PEACE studies by using our ultrasensitive SAGAsafe^® assays in these highly regarded clinical studies.
– Lao Saal, co-founder and CEO of SAGA Diagnostics

SAGAsafe^® is part of a portfolio of ultrasensitive technologies, which also includes SAGAsign^® for personalized monitoring of cancer burden and minimal residual disease (MRD) using chromosomal rearrangements, as well as novel technologies in development. SAGA offers both off-the-shelf analysis services and kits as well as custom-tailored solutions to fit customers’ needs. SAGA’s molecular tools are being used in clinical trials and hospitals for detecting actionable mutations, monitoring treatment response, measuring minimal residual disease, and identifying resistance mechanisms to help direct therapy.

Contact:

CEO Lao Saal, MD PhD. [email protected]  Phone: +46 (0) 733 01 7242

Media:

Richard Hayhurst/Ola Björkman  [email protected]  Phone: +44 (0) 7711 821527

About SAGA Diagnostics AB
SAGA Diagnostics is a personalized cancer genomics and disease monitoring company that offers molecular genetic testing of tissue biopsies and non-invasive “liquid biopsies” such as blood samples. SAGA helps pharmaceutical companies, scientists, and healthcare providers to detect actionable mutations, stratify patient groups, and monitor treatment response more accurately and to an industry-leading lower limit of detection of 0.001%. Analysis of circulating tumor DNA using its proprietary technologies gives SAGA unique ultrasensitivity, and provides the basis for optimal decision-making.

Follow SAGA on Twitter @SAGAdiagnostics and LinkedIn.

* TRACERx (Tracking Cancer Evolution through therapy (Rx)) lung study is the single biggest investment in lung cancer research by Cancer Research UK. The translational research program is the first study to look at the evolution of cancer in real time and immense detail. Researchers follow patients with lung cancer all the way from diagnosis through to either disease relapse or cure after surgery, tracking and analyzing how their cancer develops. TRACERx is led by UCL via the Cancer Research UK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence and also supported by the National Institute for Health Research, University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre, Francis Crick Institute and the Rosetrees Trust.

** The Cancer Research UK funded PEACE (Posthumous Evaluation of Advanced Cancer Environment) study, led by UCL via the Cancer Research UK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence, is the UK’s first ever national study collecting blood and tissue samples from patients who have died from cancer, to enable research to shed light on what happens during the final stages of the disease.