RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif., May 28, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- BioCurex Inc. (OTCBB:BOCX) announces initial results for its Serum-RECAF(TM) cancer test. A universal cancer marker can be used not only for diagnosis and follow up, but also for screening. The potential market for Serum-RECAF(TM) is estimated to be $2B per year.
The Company has recently been granted patent Nr. US6,514,685 B1 by the US Patent Office. This patent and others pending or granted in another 22 countries encompass the technology used in the blood test announced herein.
BioCurex has also been granted FDA clearance for its Histo-RECAF(TM) kit for cancer diagnosis on tissue sections and biopsies.
Dr. Moro stated: "This is what we live for. Even though these results are preliminary, the numbers are impressing. Now we have to test more samples and other types of cancer before we can draw final conclusions. Also, the chemistry of the assay needs to be improved before it can be released commercially.
"One thing is clear: These results strongly suggest that using RECAF we can tell if a person has cancer, probably of any type and with a high degree of accuracy, using just a drop of blood. The possibilities are exciting: For example, we could screen people who go for a routine checkup, in a similar manner to what is now done for prostate cancer, with the advantage that we could be detecting all different types of malignancies. Or we could use the test for follow-up: If a patient was operated for cancer and he or she was RECAF positive, then subsequent periodic tests could be used to spot a recurrence or a metastasis even before symptoms appear. Besides the obvious medical advantages, from a market point of view, this means that the number of tests could supersede the number of cancer patients by far. I am also happy to announce that we are advancing according to plan in creating a whole line of original products for cancer diagnosis."
The study shows that overall, 95 out of 100 cancer patients are positive with the test, while false positives are below the accepted 5% standard. The sensitivity of a test is the percentage of cancers it detects out of a 100 cancer patients. For example, 95% sensitivity means that the test will pick up 95 out of 100 patients with cancer. Specificity is the percentage of normal individuals that appear as negative: 96% specificity indicates that 4 out of 100 normal people will test positive for cancer. In Medicine, 5% false positives (95% specificity) is the accepted standard.
The study included 147 normal samples and 91 cancer samples distributed as follows: 22 breast cancers, 31 stomach cancers and 38 miscellaneous types of cancer including cervix, lung, head and neck, ovarian, colon and rectal cancers.
The sensitivity of the test ranged from 84% for stomach cancers to 100% for breast cancers (hence the 95% overall sensitivity in the study). See under Notes for a description of sensitivity and specificity.
By comparison, current markers developed for other cancers detect only 35%-50% of cases when used in breast cancer.
Stomach cancers showed 84% detection with Serum-RECAF(TM), a value unattainable by any other current blood test such as CA 19-9(TM), which detects 56% of stomach cancers with only 75% specificity and CA 72-4 (TM) which has a 51% sensitivity with 97% specificity. (Ref: Am. J. Surgery: 181,16-19, 2001)
About BioCurex:
BioCurex, Inc. is a biotechnology company that is developing products based on patented/proprietary technology in the areas of cancer diagnosis, tumor imaging ad therapeutics. The technology identifies a cancer marker known as RECAF(tm), which is found on malignant cells from a variety of cancer types but is practically absent in most normal or benign cells. Detailed information about BioCurex may be obtained from its website.
Notes: In some cases, percentages in the reported study have been extrapolated from less than 100 cases.
The Company has not authorized the release of this information in any form that contravenes the Communication Act and will not be responsible for unsolicited massive distribution of this material by e-mail or facsimile by unauthorized parties. Statements in this press release, which are not historical facts, are "forward-looking statements'' within the meaning given to that term in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company intends that such forward-looking statements be subject to the safe harbors created thereby. Since these statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, the Company's actual results could differ materially from expected results.