Roche Products (India) Pvt. Ltd. (Roche Pharma India) has announced the launch of FoundationOneLiquid CDx, Foundation Medicine’s comprehensive pan-tumor liquid biopsy test for patients with solid tumors in India.

US FDA approved the FoundationOneLiquid CDx, comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) test on August 26. This is the first test that can analyze more than 300 genes and multiple genomic signatures to optimize patient care.

Cancer is a disease of the genome. Most tumours harbour a constellation of genomic alterations that may dictate their clinical behaviour and treatment response. Blood-based biomarker testing options like FoundationOneLiquid CDx can help expand access to genomic insights in patients with advanced cancer as compared to a tissue biopsy, which may not be an option for many patients due to reasons such as tumour location and patient’s health status.

FoundationOneLiquid CDx is a single non-invasive test based on Next Generation Sequencing technology that gives access to genomic information of over 300 genes. Additionally, the report also provides information about the biomarker signatures microsatellite instability (MSI), and blood tumor mutational burden (bTMB) to support informed decision making for targeted and immunotherapies.

It is becoming increasingly important to provide personalised treatment options to the patients as it has an unprecedented scope in changing the paradigm of cancer care in the future.

FoundationOneLiquid CDx is mainly prescribed in the metastatic cancers i.e. at stage IV of the disease. The test samples collected from the patients in India are sent to Foundation Medicine Inc.’s lab in Cambridge, MA, US where the test is performed. The patients are required to discuss with their treating physicians on their eligibility for this test.