Benzinga | Dec 13, 2021 07:15AM EST

CareDx Partners With The North American Pediatric Renal Trials And Collaborative Studies Organization In Launching Prospective, Multi-Center Pediatric Kidney Transplant Study

CareDx, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDNA) -- The Transplant Company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of clinically differentiated, high-value healthcare solutions for transplant patients and caregivers -- today announced a partnership with the North American Pediatric Renal Trials and Collaborative Studies (NAPRTCS) organization to use their patient registry to evaluate the long-term impact of using AlloSure(r) Kidney, a donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) service, for routine organ transplant surveillance in pediatric kidney patients.



AlloSure had the first publication in pediatric patients titled, "Donor-Derived Cell-Free DNA (dd-cfDNA) for Detection of Allograft Rejection in Pediatric Kidney Transplants" in the Pediatric Transplantation journal in November 2020.1 The partnership with NAPRTCS will further validate the utility of AlloSure surveillance over long-term patient management. Data will be collected from participating centers by NAPRTCS for five years or until the study concludes the utility of dd-cfDNA, whichever is sooner. The objectives of the study are to characterize the use of dd-cfDNA testing and measure longitudinal outcomes following transplantation.

"Pediatric transplant patients need innovative solutions to monitor their care, and I am proud of our commitment to leading with a scientific focus on studies that can continue to bring new insights to this most important patient population. AlloSure had the first publication specifically on dd-cfDNA utility for pediatric patients, and we continue to lead innovation in this space by partnering with NAPRTCS," said Reg Seeto, CEO and President of CareDx.

"We believe partnering with CareDx will provide a great deal of important information about the care and outcomes of children who receive a kidney transplant based on the use of donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) testing" said Alicia Neu, MD, President of NAPRTCS' Board of Directors. "We thank CareDx for their ongoing collaboration with NAPRTCS and look forward to the results of this study and the guidance it provides us in caring for these young patients."

Pediatric kidney transplant recipients require many decades of graft function and research shows that graft failure rates are higher during adolescence and young adulthood than at any other age.2 AlloSure Kidney's ability to offer early warnings of possible allograft injury can help inform timely interventions for these pediatric patients, extending the life of the donated organ.