USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, a NCI-Designated Cancer Center, Joins the Caris Centers of Excellence for Precision Medicine Network to Advance the Clinical Utility of Tumor Profiling
 IRVING, Texas, Aug. 1, 2016 – Caris Life Sciences^®, a leading biotechnology company focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine, today announced the designation of USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center as a center of excellence site in the Caris Centers of Excellence for Precision Medicine Network^™ (Network).
“We are excited to welcome USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center to the Network.  As a leader in investigative cancer research, USC brings a wealth of expertise and innovative approaches to personalized medicine,” said Dr. John Marshall, Chairman of the Network, Professor of Medicine and Oncology at Georgetown University School of Medicine, and Chief of Hematology/Oncology at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.
As a Network member, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center will actively participate in tumor profiling initiatives set forth by the Network, including prospective, tumor specific clinical trials and other genomic based precision medicine research initiatives. USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center will also leverage Caris’ multi-technology tumor profiling service, Caris Molecular Intelligence^®, to enable the practice of precision medicine by identifying therapy options and clinical trial opportunities based on the unique characteristics of a patient’s tumor.
“Molecular profiling is advancing at a very rapid rate, and exciting new therapies targeting genomic and proteomic mechanisms are emerging as a result. Patients now, more than ever, have added resources to better fight their disease,” said Dr. Heinz-Josef Lenz, Associate Director for Clinical Research at USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.  “We are pleased to join the Caris Precision Medicine Network and look forward to participating with other Network members to develop prospective tumor specific trials using broad protein and genomic profiling to direct therapy in clinically challenging patient populations.”
Caris Molecular Intelligence, a service that correlates molecular data from a tumor with biomarker and drug associations from the latest clinical and scientific cancer literature, is the key technology platform used across the Network to enable the delivery of precision medicine. This information is used to help inform treatment decisions by identifying therapies that have the potential to be most effective and to rule out those that are less likely to work, based on the unique molecular characteristics of an individual patient’s cancer. Caris Molecular Intelligence is a patented and proprietary offering that uses multiple technology platforms combined with sophisticated bioinformatics to develop clinically actionable reports for more than 90,000 patients to date.
About Caris Life Sciences^®
Founded by David D. Halbert in 2008, Caris Life Sciences^® is a leading biotechnology company focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine through quality and innovation. With more than 90,000 patients profiled, Caris Molecular Intelligence^® (CMI) the company’s patented and proprietary product offering, provides oncologists with the most clinically actionable treatment options available to personalize cancer care today. Caris Molecular Intelligence uses a variety of advanced profiling technologies to assess relevant biological changes in each patient’s tumor.  CMI then connects the biomarker data generated from the tumor with biomarker-drug associations supported by the evidence and in relevant clinical literature through the Company’s proprietary bioinformatics rules engine. Since 2009, Caris Life Sciences has tracked clinical and outcome data for certain patients utilizing CMI, and has observed that patients treated with drugs consistent with CMI’s recommendations based upon the patient’s tumor profile show a significant increase in overall survival. The company is also developing its ADAPT Biotargeting System^™, a revolutionary and unbiased profiling platform with applications across therapy development, drug delivery, advanced diagnostics and disease monitoring. Currently being developed for cancer and other complex diseases, the ADAPT Biotargeting System is able to simultaneously measure millions of molecular interactions within complex biological systems in their natural state(s). Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Caris Life Sciences offers services throughout the U.S., Europe, Australia and other international markets. To learn more, please visit www.CarisLifeSciences.com.
About USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center has been leading the fight to make cancer a disease of the past. As one of the eight original comprehensive cancer centers in the United States, its mission is to treat and prevent cancer by advancing and integrating education, research, and personalized patient care. For over 40 years, USC Norris has been revolutionizing cancer research with innovative surgical techniques and novel cancer treatments. The cancer center’s breakthroughs and discoveries in the field of epigenetics have led the way to a greater understanding of the underlying causes of cancer and new methods of prevention, detection, and treatment. With a multidisciplinary team of more than 250 dedicated scientists and physicians, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center offers patients hope in the battle against cancer. To learn more, please visit http://cancer.keckmedicine.org.
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