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Issue link: https://clinicalomics.epubxp.com/i/898657
42 Clinical OMICs November/December 2017 www.clinicalomics.com Precision Medicine Strata Oncology will partner with University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), to expand access to tumor sequencing and clinical trials for men with metastatic prostate cancer. Strata, a precision oncology company, and UCSF are launching Stratify Prostate, an initiative aimed at advancing precision medicine among men with advanced forms of the disease. "Our shared goal is to provide advanced patients the opportunity to be tested without the worry of cost or loca- tion," Strata CEO Dan Rhodes, Ph.D., said in a statement. Through Stratify Prostate, Strata said, eligible metastatic prostate cancer patients anywhere in the United States can now access a free next-generation sequencing (NSG) test by enrolling in the Strata Trial, a Strata-sponsored observa- tional study aimed at assessing the impact of sequencing on clinical trial enrollment. The test, StrataNGS, is a 90-gene targeted assay focused on actionable genetic alterations, and conducted in Stra- ta's high-throughput CLIA-certified lab in Ann Arbor, MI. StrataNGS is designed to sequence DNA and RNA using limited archival or fresh biopsy material, as well as generate results in less than 10 business days. Additional trials for prostate cancer targeted therapy will be evaluated for inclusion in Stratify Prostate, according to Strata. "With innovations like Stratify Prostate and the larger Strata Trial, our aim is to establish highly efficient ways for physicians and their patients to get actionable genetic infor- mation and real-time connections to targeted therapies," Rhodes added. Launched in February, Strata Trial is available to patients with several forms of advanced cancer, including prostate cancer and other solid tumors and lymphomas. The trial is designed to identify candidates for targeted therapies through no-cost sequencing. Physicians who are not affiliated with Strata Trial clinical research sites can, via Stratify Prostate, offer eligible patients with advanced prostate cancer access to tumor sequencing. UCSF physicians and researchers are expected to play a leading role in Stratify Prostate, according to Strata, by applying insights from the initiative toward advances in prostate cancer. The first clinical trials targeted in Stratify Prostate are TRI- TON2 and TRITON3, both of which are intended to assess Clovis Oncology's approved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor Rubraca (rucaparib) in metastatic castra- tion-resistant prostate cancer. Rubraca is indicated as monotherapy to treat patients with deleterious BRCA mutation- (germline and/or somatic) asso- ciated advanced ovarian cancer, who have been treated with two or more chemotherapies and selected for therapy based on an FDA-approved companion diagnostic for Rubraca. In April, Clovis partnered with Myriad Genetics to apply Myriad's BRACAnalysis CDx test as a companion diagnos- tic for Rubraca. And in February, Strata agreed to offer patient identifica- tion and enrollment for Epizyme's ongoing Phase II clinical trial of tazemetostat in patients with relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL). Strata Oncology, UCSF Collaborate on Precision Medicine in Prostate Cancer Intermountain Taps 10x Genomics for Precision Health Intermountain Precision Genomics and 10x Genomics announced the addition of Chromium Genome Solution to the Translational Science Center (TSC). The center currently houses several of the latest high-throughput next-generation sequencing instruments for large-scale whole genome sequencing. According to Helaman Escobar, director of TSC, "The instruments in the Translational Science Cen- ter coupled with the technology solutions provided by 10x Genomics support Intermountain Health- care's initiative to advance precision health to bring personalized medicine from the lab bench to clinical practice and improve patient's lives." The TSC will create a pipeline of genomic information and eventually impact personalized clin- ical practice. The TSC will also collaborate with investigators and clinicians inside and outside the network of Intermountain hospitals and clinics to enable their research initiatives. One of the pri- mary goals of the Translational Science Center is to sequence groups of samples from Intermountain's decades-old BioRepository. Pablo_K / Getty Images