TrovaGene: Trovera Liquid Biopsy Urine Test Results Positive

Molecular diagnostic company, TrovaGene Inc. (NASDAQ:TROV) , recently presented clinical results demonstrating the effectiveness of its Trovera non-invasive test in detecting EGFR T790M mutations in the urine of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Built upon TrovaGene’s Precision Cancer Monitoring (PCM) platform, Trovera urine and blood-based EGFR, KRAS and BRAF CLIA and CAP-accredited tests are available to oncologists for the detection and monitoring of cancerous tumors.

The presentation demonstrated at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting showed that urine-based biopsy is an effective alternative to plasma or tissue-based tests when it comes to the detection of T790M mutations for targeted therapies.

The presentation showed that urine and plasma tests identified EGFR T790M mutations which tissue tests failed to spot. This is probably due to tumor heterogeneity or inadequate sample quality. Moreover, response rate to therapy, duration of response and progression-free survival of patients positive for T790M in urine was similar to patients who tested positive for T790M in plasma or tissue.

Lung cancer currently accounts for approximately 58% of TrovaGene’s total test volume. The company plans to publish nine papers this year in the oncology journal Cancer Discovery, which has a large following among oncologists.

The first paper highlighted PCM platform’s ability to confirm BRAF V600E mutational status and to quantitatively assess changes in urinary circulating tumor DNA. The paper concluded that PCM can be used to determine response to novel therapy combining both a BRAF inhibitor and a MEK inhibitor to treat colorectal neuroendocrine tumors.

Of the remaining eight papers, TrovaGene has already submitted three and is in the process to submit another two in the near term.

The recent presentation validates TrovaGene’s claims over the effectiveness of its PCM technology. It is to be noted that the company’s non-invasive, cell-free technology is cost efficient. We feel that the technology can be ancillary to the current standard of tissue biopsy. It can also be performed in patients not fit for a tissue biopsy.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Currently, TrovaGene has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Better-ranked stocks in the broader medical sector include IRadimed (NASDAQ:IRMD) , Masimo Corp (NASDAQ:MASI) and Exactech (NASDAQ:EXAC) . While Masimo and IRadimed sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Exactech has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).