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LONDON (Alliance News) - Life sciences company ValiRx PLC's shares rose on Wednesday morning after the company said it has been handed patent approval from the European Patent Office for a biomarker testing process.
The patent covers the means for diagnosing and monitoring of patients using biomarker testing for B-cell lymphomas and its prognostic outcome, ValiRx said.
The patent is based around the NAV3 gene and focuses on a method to permit early diagnosis by use of the biomarker for diagnosing and separating types of B-cell lymphomas into different prognostic groups, ValiRx added. This method assists in the identification of patients at increased risk of developing aggressive forms of B-cell lymphomas and it permits clinicians to select those therapies which are most effective in an individual patient, the company said.
"The granting of this latest patent not only further extends our global geographic patent coverage, but it continues to endorse the board's decision to establish ValiFinn and our Finnish biomarkers business to capitalise on the increasingly fast use of biomarkers in oncology therapeutics, which is one of the biggest application areas with a main emphasis on predictive and personalised medicine," said ValiRx Chief Executive Officer Satu Vainikka.
ValiRx shares were up 15% to 0.275 pence on the news, one of the best performers in the AIM All-Share.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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