Benzinga | Nov 19, 2020 08:04AM EST

Aspira Women's Health, Inc. Announces A Collaborative Agreement With Baylor Genetics For Co-Development Of An Ovarian Cancer Early-Detection Test

AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aspira Women's Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:AWH), a bioanalytical-based women's health company, today announced it has entered into a collaborative research agreement with Baylor Genetics (Houston, TX) to co-develop a novel Ovarian Cancer early-detection test. Ovarian cancer accounts for more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system and is the only gender specific cancer with an over 50 percent mortality rate impacting women of all ages and ethnicities.

"Aspira has over 10 years of research and experience in early stage detection of ovarian cancer in women, and we are thrilled to accelerate our innovation and product development platform by entering into this collaborative agreement with Baylor Genetics. We look forward to combining the strengths from each respective research team, and working together on our OVA360 clinical study, specifically in our mutual goal of characterizing an Ovarian Cancer molecular profile," said Lesley Northrop, Ph.D., FACMG, Chief Scientific Officer at Aspira Women's Health. "Baylor Genetics is one of the founding institutions of genomic research, collaborating on proteogenomic technology in the development of a cell-free DNA-based Ovarian Cancer risk detection test."

Dr. Brian Merritt, Medical Director at Baylor Genetics, said,"Ovarian cancer is a particular cancer type in need of better early detection methods, and advances in genetic testing technologies now enable us to develop such a test for clinical use. Aligning with Aspira to co-develop this novel test will advance precision medicine for women with ovarian cancer and potentially lead to earlier intervention, more targeted treatments, and improved outcomes."

Baylor Genetics has been a leading pioneer in genetic testing, providing unmatched knowledge and experience in hereditary genetics, clinical genomics, and translational technology. Aspira is uniquely positioned to co-develop and recruit patient samples for the development of this new test. With over 10 years of experience in ovarian cancer risk assessment testing and developing multiple FDA-cleared products that are instrumental in helping providers and patients detect risk in women with pelvic masses, Aspira provides both clinical and commercialization expertise for bringing this novel test to market.