Clinical-stage nuclear medicine company Radiopharm Theranostics (ASX:RAD) has announced the publication of positive results of a retrospective study of the biokinetics of 68Ga-RAD 301 in pancreatic cancer patients.
Dr Jana Rehm and colleagues from the Technische Universität Dresden developed the paper based on 44 patients. The paper was published in Frontiers in Nuclear Medicine.
The paper, 'αvβ6-integrin targeted PET/CT imaging in pancreatic cancer patients using 68Ga-Trivehexin', describes the clinical results of a retrospective study of the biokinetics of 68Ga-RAD 301 in pancreatic cancer patients.
The primary tumour and metastases in the liver, lymph nodes, peritoneum, lung, bone, spleen, pleural cavity, and soft tissues were visualised with a high tumour-to-background ratio.
Radiopharm said that with no adverse events recorded, the findings indicate that RAD 301 is a suitable and safe diagnostic agent for imaging αvβ6-integrin expression in pancreatic cancer.
RAD 301 is a peptide that targets αvβ6-integrin, a cellular marker for tumour invasion and metastatic growth, the expression of which correlates with decreased survival in several carcinomas, particularly pancreatic.
The αvβ6-integrin receptor is found in high density on most pancreatic carcinoma and head and neck squamous carcinoma cells, making it an attractive potential diagnostic and therapeutic target in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and Head-and-Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.
“Current imaging standards of care for the detection of PDAC have significant limitations, making this one of the highest areas of unmet medical need and posing a major challenge for healthcare providers in imaging PDAC patients,” said Riccardo Canevari, CEO and managing director of Radiopharm Theranostics. “These findings reinforce the clinical potential of RAD 301 as an imaging agent for the more sensitive and selective detection of pancreatic cancer and its metastases, ultimately advancing PDAC patient management.”
