[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/6908\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EFamily\u2019s grief sparks a quest for better bladder cancer cures\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Our lives literally came to a stop when my mother was diagnosed with cancer,\u2019 said Dr Gitte Pedersen. \u2018The first treatment didn\u2019t work, neither did the next one. Eventually we just ran out of time.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe heartbreak of losing her mother inspired Dr Pedersen and her brother, Morten, to take action and start a Danish biotech company, Genomic Expression, in 2009. \u2018It\u2019s very much a passion project \u2013 we want to help solve this problem.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe deeper they looked at modern cancer care, the more convinced they became that a new approach was needed. Dr Pedersen says\u0026nbsp;that only about one in four treatments prolong life, and\u0026nbsp;as many drugs don\u0027t work, tens of billions of euro are wasted globally every year. \u2018My brother and I are both scientists and, understanding genetics, we concluded that there had to be a better way,\u0027 she said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETheir goal has been to apply the latest findings from basic research in areas such as genomics to improve the lives of cancer patients. At the heart of their approach are insights that allow patients to be treated according to the underlying cause of their disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThrough Genomic Expression, the Pedersens believe they can improve cancer diagnosis and monitoring, help doctors find the right drugs for patients, and make it easier for drug developers to identify suitable patients for clinical trials of new medicines.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018My brother and I are both scientists and, understanding genetics, we concluded that there had to be a better way (to treat cancer).\u0026#039;\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EDr Gitte Pedersen, Genomic Expression \u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor Genomic Expression, bladder cancer is a key target because it is costly to treat due to expensive and invasive diagnostic procedures. It also has a very high recurrence rate of between 50% and 70%, which means that patients undergo lifelong surveillance. Knowing the underlying genetic drivers in a patient\u2019s tumour presents an opportunity to pick the most effective treatment and reduce recurrence.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe company uses a patented technology that filters urine, allowing bladder tumour cells to be selected and tested for a series of biomarkers \u2013 tell-tale molecular signs of cancer. Diagnostic and treatment choices can then be tailored to the genetic make-up of the tumour cells. Four studies are underway to test the system in people with breast, ovarian, colon and bladder cancer.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBarriers\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne of the barriers to improving outcomes for bladder cancer patients is obtaining early and accurate diagnosis. \u2018The only symptom is blood in the urine,\u2019 said Dr Pedersen, who leads the OneRNA4Bladder project focused on validating a urine-based diagnostic test. \u2018But only one in 10 (people) who present to their doctor with blood in the urine actually have cancer. However, given the risk of serious illness, all are referred to specialist urologists for cystoscopy.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECystoscopy is a highly invasive procedure wherein the bladder is inspected using a small camera inserted into the urinary tract. Patients who have survived cancer are required to have between four and eight cystoscopies per year.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It\u2019s an invasive and uncomfortable procedure and causes urinary tract infections in 10% of patients,\u2019 Dr Pedersen said. \u2018The test we are validating would potentially substitute for some or all of these.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe urine test would spare patients cystoscopies, save health professionals time, and reduce costs for health systems.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIf all goes to plan, it could even be offered by general practitioners, reducing waiting times by avoiding referrals to hospital specialists.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The patient experience will completely change over the next five years,\u2019 Dr Pedersen said. \u2018For monitoring recurrence, the patients will be able to take the test in the comfort of their home and only get called into the doctor\u2019s office if the test is positive. That will support adherence, which is a problem for older patients who are immobile, as well as patients who simply refuse to undergo cystoscopy several times a year.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnother way\u0026nbsp;of detecting the presence and nature of\u0026nbsp;tumours\u0026nbsp;is\u0026nbsp;by\u0026nbsp;analysing\u0026nbsp;the small protein strands known as peptides. By identifying the combination of peptides in a urine sample and analysing this through mathematical models and data analytics, scientists can tell how aggressive a cancer is likely to be.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMosaiques Diagnostics, a German\u0026nbsp;biotech company,\u0026nbsp;is using these predictive qualities of peptide analysis to develop a bladder cancer urine test. The work falls under several projects, which have been working on\u0026nbsp;different aspects of the test.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe company uses an approach known as capillary electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry (CE-MS), to profile bladder cancer at the molecular level by analysing a urine sample.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The system can detect up to 22,000 peptides which are initially separated depending on their electrical mobility (charge),\u2019 said Dr Maria Frantzi, a postdoctoral researcher at Mosaiques Diagnostics working on a project called TheranOMICS.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EPersonalised\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EScientists can test a single urine sample for several diseases at once. This information is then checked against a database including more than 50,000 patients to determine the molecular characteristics of the tumour in that particular person.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018By identifying the combination of peptides present in urine, we can go back to the patient with a score indicating the probability of disease being present,\u2019 Dr Frantzi said. \u2018We could also calculate the risk of the disease recurring in patients who have been successfully treated for cancer.\u2019 This can alert the urologist and guide personalised patient management.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis approach has the potential to improve bladder cancer detection, but ultimately, shifting to a new system may take time.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Cystoscopy cannot see all tumours, particularly those high up in the bladder, but this molecular approach is more precise,\u2019 said Professor Harald Mischak, founder of Mosaiques Diagnostics.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018I hope clinical practice will change in the coming years, but this will require a willingness from clinics to implement new approaches, as well as regulatory approval and reimbursement. When it comes to changing patient care, science is not the only piece of the puzzle.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe research in this article was funded by the EU. 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