OncoCyte announces publication of DetermaCNI assay data

Oncocyte (OCX) announced the publication of data regarding its DetermaCNI assay. In a paper recently published in the journal Acta Neuropathologica Communications, DetermaCNI showed promise as a liquid biopsy method for diagnosing and profiling central nervous system tumors by measuring somatic copy number aberrations, or SCNAs, in cerebrospinal fluid. As noted in the paper, the gold standard for precise diagnostic classification of brain tumors requires a biopsy, with risks including limited sensitivity and failing to measure the diverse potential regions of the tumor. SCNAs were observed in the cerebrospinal fluid of ten out of the 12 patients with confirmed central nervous system cancers. SCNAs were not observed in any of the 11 patients with benign or unclear central nervous system lesions. The detection of SCNAs is highly specific for tumor-derived cell-free DNA. Overall, this new study demonstrates DetermaCNI’s potential for providing a molecularly informed diagnosis of central nervous system cancers, mapping tumor heterogeneity, tracking tumor evolution, and surveilling tumor patients through a liquid biopsy of cerebrospinal fluid. Oncocyte believes this study validates the future clinical potential for DetermaCNI, as well as the direction of the company’s research and development pipeline, which is designed to drive sustained rapid growth over the next decade. It expects to commercialize its oncology assays over the next two years.