May 9, 2018 — Blue Earth Diagnostics signed an exclusive, worldwide agreement with Scintomics GmbH, Germany, a specialist in radiopharmaceuticals and radiopharmaceutical technologies. Under the terms of the agreement, Blue Earth Diagnostics has acquired the exclusive worldwide rights to a broad family of prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeted radiohybrid (“rh”) agents for cancer imaging, together with an exclusive option to explore therapeutic applications.
Blue Earth Diagnostics will drive development of a lead 18F rhPSMA imaging compound and collaborate with Scintomics to identify optimized therapeutic candidates for future development. The company said acquisition of the rights to this advanced technology provides strong synergies with Axumin (fluciclovine F-18), Blue Earth Diagnostics’ approved and commercially available positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging agent for use in patients with a rising PSA after prior prostate cancer treatment.
Scintomics’ theranostic “radiohybrid” technology allows for the efficient labelling of PSMA-targeted agents with imaging radioisotopes, such as 18F, or therapeutic radioisotopes such as 177Lu. This could potentially be used either as a prostate cancer imaging agent or as a therapeutic agent. If approved, these compounds offer the possibility of precision medicine for men with prostate cancer.
“As evidenced by its recent inclusion in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines, 18F-fluciclovine has become established as a standard-of-care PET imaging agent in the United States for men with recurrent prostate cancer,” said Judd Moul, M.D., professor of surgery and director, Duke Prostate Center, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C. “It is clear that PSMA-targeted PET imaging agents will play an important role in the future management of prostate cancer patients. However, there is a wide array of these agents in development, and some have more promising attributes than others. Optimally, a PSMA-targeted diagnostic agent for routine clinical use should be labeled with the radioisotope 18F for its durability and possess favorable clinical attributes that facilitate broad applicability and utility in men with prostate cancer.”
For more information: www.blueearthdiagnostics.com