RNA Diagnostics has developed the RNA Disruption Assay (RDA) to assess the response of cancer patients to chemotherapy and other cancer treatments. The RDA can assess response within 2 to 3 weeks of starting treatment, compared to the current standard of 4 to 6 months. Disruption of rRNA is a biomarker of impending cell death. If anticancer drugs are effective, rRNA will be highly disrupted. If anti-cancer drugs are not effective, rRNA will be intact.

Why we invested ?

One of the major challenges in cancer treatment is to identify patients who do not respond to chemotherapy early in the course of treatment, so that adverse effects can be avoided and alternative therapies can be considered. This concept of response-guided chemotherapy provides the opportunity to discontinue or modify treatment in the event of non-response.

It therefore provides physicians with an objective approach to optimize and individualize cancer treatment. Detecting non-response to treatment will also allow healthcare payers to avoid the costs of inadequate treatment.