personalized medicine Archives - Amazing Health Advances

A Blood Test That Can Identify Recurrent Cancer

AHA Publisher — Fri, 15 Oct 2021 07:00:04 +0000

Abigail Klein Leichman via Israel21c – When Asaf Zviran was diagnosed with cancer, he was doing operations research and R&D in the Israeli navy and earning his master’s degree at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Maybe that’s why he pictured cancer as an enemy to defeat– if he could find the right weapon and target. After his successful treatment and seven years of military service, in 2012Zviranbegan PhD studies in molecular biology at the Weizmann Institute of Science. During his postdoctoral research at the New York Genome Center from 2016 to 2019, he zeroed in on his target: cancer that persists or returns after treatment. Working with world-class scientists at the center, he invented a whole-genome sequencing method, aided by artificial intelligence, enabling early detection of persistent or recurrent cancer cells from a standard blood sample. As soon as he finished his postdoc fellowship, Zviran and three friends founded C2i Genomics to develop his personalized medicine approach, described in a paper published in Nature Medicine. His postdoctoral mentor, Weill Cornell Medicine oncologist Dan Landau, is the company’s scientific cofounder and sits on its scientific advisory board. The company has raised more than $100 million in financing from Casdin Capital, NFX, Duquesne Family Office, Section 32, iGlobe Partners, Driehaus Capital and others. “With our technology, physicians can monitor their patient treatment response and detect treatment failure or disease recurrence months and even years before they would do otherwise,” Zviran says. Command, Control and Intelligence “C2i is a military term for ‘command, control and intelligence’ – it expresses the vision of applying defense methodologies to oncology,” explains cofounder Boris Oklander, the startup’s CTO. “Cancer is like an enemy with a unique signal of a mutation that we want to detect. We fight this enemy with technology grounded in our experience in the defense sector.” Headquartered in New York with R&D in Haifa and a sequencing lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts, C2i Genomics is one of nine digital healthcare startups in the current cohort of PlayBeyondBio. This is an accelerator run by a partnership of Israeli venture capital fund JVP, British-Swedish pharma giant AstraZeneca, international consulting firm Accenture, Margalit Startup City, Amazon AWS, and Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. “The idea is to see how this ecosystem of partners can join forces and generate pilot studies,” says Oklander. “There are biobanks of patient samples in Shaare Zedek that can help evaluate and validate technologies like ours and help get our plug-and-play diagnostic service to market quickly.” In July, C2i signed a collaboration agreement with Premier, an American healthcare improvement company. The agreement includes implementing the C2i platform at eight Premier member hospitals and clinics. Ending Over- and Undertreatment Oklander tells ISRAEL21c that this unique approach could solve the significant problem of over- or undertreatment of solid tumors. What usually happens is that the tumor is removed surgically. The pathology report helps the oncologist make an educated guess whether to wait and monitor the patient periodically, or to start chemotherapy and/or radiation as a precaution against undetected cancer cells. “There is no good way to know in real time if the patient is cancer-free,” says Oklander. Patients getting chemotherapy need to wait months before knowing if there is a good response. Patients getting monitored may have a tumor growing undetected during that time. “If we can measure the level of cancer in the patient’s blood in real time — like measuring the glucose level in diabetics — there is no need to predict but rather measure what is happening right now and support clinical decision-making relating to which treatment to use, or to monitor and step in as soon as necessary.” With 20 million new cancer diagnoses around the world each year, this method could save many people from being overtreated with toxic, painful, costly chemotherapy and from being undertreated while a new tumor is quietly growing. “Our test can improve the entire cycle for the patient and for the payers,” says Oklander, noting that insurance carriers are shifting their focus to evidence-based reimbursement to improve the economics of oncology. World First Although other cancer genomics services are available, C2i’s platform is designed to be uniquely accessible and thorough. “The way our competitors work is that patient blood samples are sent to a central lab, usually in the United States,” says Oklander. “Our distributed solution is logistically simpler because the sample can be processed at any genomic sequencing lab. There are 15,000 sequencers in the world — the machines that produce genomic data from blood samples. Each of these sequencers can communicate with us through a secure Internet connection.” Compliance with GDPR (Europe) and HIPAA (USA) privacy regulations is configured into the C2i system for each region, he adds. The other difference is that C2iscans the entire genome to find thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of mutations unique to each patient. “In two people with the same cancer diagnosis, less than 1% of the mutations are common between the two of them,” explains Oklander. “We capture the entire genomic makeup of each patient using AI and signal processing. Then we test the blood at all stages in the treatment to see if these mutations are still present.” Zviran notes that C2i Genomics was a finalist for the 2021 Spinoff Prize awarded by Nature and Merck. “We are proud of the recognition of our work detecting ultra-low amounts of tumor DNA in blood samples, to guide treatment decisions and ultimately save patient lives,” Zviran says. For more information, click here To read the original article click here.

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Memory Loss Reversed or Abated in Those with Cognitive Decline

AHA Publisher — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 07:00:05 +0000

IOS Press via EurekAlert – Latest research from Affirmativ Health succeeds in treating cognitive decline using personalized, precision medicine. Affirmativ Health sought to determine whether a comprehensive and personalized program, designed to mitigate risk factors of Alzheimer’s disease could improve cognitive and metabolic function in individuals experiencing cognitive decline. Findings provided evidence that this approach can improve risk factor scores and stabilize cognitive function. July 31, 2020/Sonoma, CA Cognitive decline is a major concern of the aging population. Already, Alzheimer’s disease affects approximately 5.4 million Americans and 30 million people globally. Without effective prevention and treatment, the prospects for the future are bleak. By 2050, it is estimated that 160 million people globally will have the disease, including 13 million Americans, leading to potential bankruptcy of the Medicare system. Unlike several other chronic illnesses, Alzheimer’s disease is on the rise–recent estimates suggest that Alzheimer’s disease has become the third leading cause of death in the United States behind cardiovascular disease and cancer. Since its first description over 100 years ago, Alzheimer’s disease has been without effective treatment. While researchers continue to seek out a cure, it is becoming clear that there are effective treatment options. More and more research supports the conclusion that Alzheimer’s disease is not a disease of only Beta Amyloid plaques and Tao tangles but a complex and systemic disease. In this study of patients with varying levels of cognitive decline, it is demonstrated how a precision and personalized approach results in either stabilization or improvement in memory. Interventions to stop the progression of Alzheimer’s disease have been marginally successful at best. This study uses a more comprehensive, personalized approach addressing each participant’s unique risk factors. “The findings, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports (Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports 4(1)), are encouraging and indicate that a more extensive clinical study is warranted”, said Brian Kennedy, PhD, Director of The Centre for Healthy Aging, National University Health System, Singapore and Chief Scientific Officer, Affirmativ Health. The Affirmativ Health scientific team, after thorough review of published research, has developed a comprehensive approach to addressing scientifically supported risk factors that have been rigorously defined as interventions to promote prevention, increased resiliency, and stabilization of brain function in the realm of AD and dementia. Utilizing cutting edge technology in concert with in-person coaching and consultation, we are demonstrating that a multi-modal and personalized approach promotes an improved resiliency and restoration of optimal brain function. The personalized therapeutic program includes genetics, an extensive blood panel, medical history and lifestyle data to evaluate relevant metabolic risk factors and nutrient levels associated with cognitive health. “Target laboratory levels differ from standard laboratory ranges as the goal is to reach optimized levels for cognitive health”, Ginger Schechter, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Affirmativ Health. The study approach considers more than 35 factors known to contribute to cognitive decline. Results demonstrate that certain of those factors are more affected than others again demonstrating the need for a more precise treatment plan. “This study supports the need for an approach that focuses on a one-size fits one, not a one-size fits all, approach that comprehensively assesses all involved risk factors affecting memory loss”, Denise M Kalos, CEO Affirmativ Health. In conjunction with the publication of this vital study, and to expose alternative treatment options for Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive decline, the team at Affirmativ Health has written a book, Outsmart your Brain – an Insider’s Guide to Life-Long Memory. “Memory is not something that should diminish with age; you are never too young to start developing healthy habits that can ultimately impact your cognition,” Outsmart Your Brain. This book leverages the foundation of Affirmativ Health’s research to deliver a tips and tools guide for the maintenance of good cognitive health. “Far too few people understand how critical lifestyle and dietary choices are for brain function. ‘Outsmart Your Brain’ is an important tool to get this information into the hands of those who should know it, everyone!, in easy-to-understand language”, Ryan R. Fortna, MD, PhD, Chief Medical/Scientific Officer, ADx Healthcare. To read the original article click here.

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