RICHMOND, British Columbia, Nov. 30, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- BioCurex Inc. (Pink Sheets:BOCX) is pleased to report its findings on RECAF(tm) serum testing of Prostate cancer specimens. Our results show that BioCurex's RECAF serum test exhibited greater sensitivity and more importantly, much higher specificity than the currently used PSA test as shown in the table.
TEST SENSITIVITY SPECIFICITY
PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen)
cutoff = 4 ng/ml 82% 40%
or PSA with a cutoff = 15 ng/ml(1) 25% 95%
RECAF (Cancer vs normals)(2) 90% 100%
RECAF (Cancer vs benign)(3) 88% 100%
(1)Source: Figure 3, values at 4 ng/ml. Brawer MK., CA Cancer J Clin
(American Cancer Society), 1999 Sep-Oct;49(5):264-81
(http://caonline.amcancersoc.org/cgi/reprint/49/5/264).
(2)Values from 77 known cancer patients were compared to 66 normal
donors.
(3)Values from 77 known cancer patients were compared to 65 patients
with benign prostate tumors or hyperplasia.
According to the National Cancer Institute, "Most men with an elevated PSA test turn out not to have cancer; only 25 to 30 percent of men who have a biopsy due to elevated PSA levels actually have prostate cancer" (1). This is because PSA is produced by prostate cells, whether they are malignant or benign and therefore, benign tumors also produce PSA in excess. Therefore, as noted in the Journal of the American Medical Association, PSA is not a suitable marker to screen asymptomatic men for prostatic cancer (2) and yet, for lack of a better test, it is used in regular checkups.
The PSA test is not specific enough to screen for prostate cancer. On the other hand, the high specificity exhibited by RECAF tests of prostate specimens, as well as in many other types of cancer, strongly supports the use of RECAF testing for screening.
Moreover, combining the PSA and RECAF tests could eliminate the false positives resulting from using PSA testing alone. PSA has the advantage of localizing the problem to the prostate and RECAF could then determine if the high PSA value is due to a cancer. This combination would also facilitate the introduction of RECA into the market place since PSA testing is very common. The company is discussing such a combination of tests with major healthcare companies and laboratories presently performing PSA tests.
PSA projected sales worldwide for 2004 are $450M (3) and prostate cancer represents only 17% of all cancers (4). Our preliminary results indicate that RECAF works better than PSA for the detection of prostate cancer; and previous data showed that it could be used in most types of cancer. A simple extrapolation suggests a market potential for RECAF of $2.6B per year. To date, BioCurex has reported highly positive results from testing many forms of cancer including prostate, stomach, lung, ovary, breast and colon. These amount to 2/3 of all types of cancers and we believe that RECAF will work as well for the other 1/3 of malignancies.
Dr. Moro, BoCurex's CEO, stated: "We are extremely happy to report these results, which were obtained with a new version of the company's blood cancer detection assay. This improved test uses monoclonal antibody technology, for which Milstein and Kohler received the Nobel price in 1984. Monoclonal antibodies offer many significant advantages over the conventional antiserum test we were using previously to prove the RECAF concept. Monoclonals are far more specific, they are very consistent from one batch to another and they are easy to produce in industrial quantities using tissue culture techniques."
The American Cancer Society estimates that over 220,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year in the U.S. with 29,000 deaths attributable to prostate cancer.
The company also wishes to advise that it is continuing its efforts to re-establish itself for quotation on the NASD OTC:BB. The process is not a direct one but the company is committed to the goal of achieving a more advanced listing. We appreciate the patience of our investors at this time and we will provide the investment community with appropriate updates as they occur.
BioCurex is also progressing with its plan to license its RECAF technology. A licensing agreement would allow the company to work with healthcare companies experienced in the cancer diagnostic arena and allow BioCurex to benefit from their scientific and business expertise.
To read more about the Company, please visit the News section in our web site (www.biocurex.com).
About BioCurex:
BioCurex, Inc. is a biotechnology company that is developing products based on patented/proprietary technology in the area of cancer diagnosis. The technology identifies a cancer marker known as RECAF(TM), which is found on malignant cells from a variety of cancer types but is absent in most normal or benign cells. To find out more about BioCurex (Pink Sheets:BOCX), visit our website at www.biocurex.com.
Note:
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.
References: (1) Source: http://cis.nci.nih.gov/fact/5_29.htm (2) Source : MD Krahn et al, Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), 1994 Sep 14;272(10):773-80. (3) Source: The Worldwide Market for Cancer Diagnostics, November 2002. Market report published by Kalorama Information (http://www.kaloramainformation.com) (4) Source: American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts and Figures 2004 http://www.cancer.org/docroot/STT/content/STT_1x_Cancer_Facts__Figure s_2004.asp)