AnchorDx, a world-leading developer of cancer screening and early detection solutions, together with renowned thoracic experts from 14 top-tier hospitals in China, jointly published a clinical research paper entitled "Accurate Diagnosis of Pulmonary Nodules Using a Non-invasive DNA Methylation Test" in the early April 2021 edition of the monthly peer-reviewed Journal of Clinical Investigation.

The study addressed the need for an accurate non-invasive test to identify malignant nodules and reduce unnecessary invasive tests. The diagnosis model "PulmoSeek", a 100-feature methylation model, was developed and validated for pulmonary nodule diagnosis using a deep learning-based algorithm, the results of which achieved an ROC-AUC of 0.843 on 140 independent validation samples with an accuracy of 0.800.

The diagnostic performance of the model was well maintained in, 1) 6-20 mm size subgroup (N=100), with a sensitivity of 1.000 and NPV of 1.000 at 10% prevalence; 2) stage I malignancy (N=90), with a sensitivity of 0.971; 3) different nodule types – solid nodules (N=78) with a sensitivity of 1.000 and adjusted NPV of 1.000, part-solid nodules (N=75) with a sensitivity of 0.947 and adjusted NPV of 0.983, and ground-glass nodules (N=67) with a sensitivity of 0.964 and adjusted NPV of 0.989 at 10% prevalence. The PulmoSeek model also outperformed PET-CT and two clinical prediction models (Mayo Clinic and Veterans Affairs) in discriminating malignant pulmonary nodules from benign ones.

The study suggests that the blood-based cfDNA methylation model may provide a better test for classifying pulmonary nodules, which could help facilitate the accurate diagnosis of early-stage lung cancer in pulmonary nodule patients and guide clinical decisions.

As a further breakthrough in the field of lung cancer early diagnosis, PulmoSeek Plus, an upgraded PulmoSeek test combining methylation tests with LDCT imaging artificial intelligence (AI), has recently been developed and achieved higher accuracy in the early diagnosis of lung cancer.

About AnchorDx

Founded in 2015, AnchorDx is a world-leading developer of cancer screening and early detection solutions based on methylation NGS technology. AnchorDx strives to revolutionize single/multi/pan-cancer early screening, detection technologies, and products. The current product pipeline encompasses more than 70% of high-incidence cancers. In addition, AnchorDx has a proprietary big data and artificial intelligence platform designed for early lung cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment.