US-based pharmaceutical company Aytu BioScience has started enrolling and dosing patients in its prostate cancer study. In association with Hybridyne Imaging Technologies they will evaluate Hybridyne’s ProxiScan compact gamma cameras to detect local prostate cancer using Aytu’s imaging agent ProstaScint.
The open label prostate cancer study ‘Detection and localisation of carcinoma using high resolution transrectal gamma imaging (TRGI)’, will enroll 60 men characterised in three patient groups.
The first group will feature patients with rising levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) following a radical prostatectomy treatment, while the second group will have patients with rising PSA and / or abnormal digital rectal exam and have been subjected to at least one prostate biopsy that tested negative for prostate cancer.
The third group will comprise of patients with prostate cancer scheduled to undergo biopsy as their routine follow-up.
Approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), ProstaScint targets prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) with high-sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy.
Hybridyne’s high-resolution ProxiScan gamma camera uses cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) detector technology, its small size makes it suitable for trans-rectal prostate cancer diagnosis.
Aytu CEO Josh Disbrow said: "ProstaScint is a well established, FDA-approved imaging agent that can specifically target prostate cancer, and the clinical acceptance of ProstaScint may improve through the generation of additional clinical data examining ProstaScint’s use in conjunction with ProxiScan.
"We look forward to progressing this study in conjunction with Hybridyne and Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, our first ProstaScint clinical collaboration outside the US."
The combination of technologies is aimed at offering additional diagnostic and prognostic assistance to urologists, resulting in an enhanced quality of care for prostate cancer patients in Canada and around the world.
