NEW YORK – Castle Biosciences said Monday that it has received approval from the New York State Department of Health for its TissueCypher Barrett’s Esophagus test, which is designed to predict a patient’s risk of progressing from Barrett’s esophagus to esophageal cancer.
The test analyzes esophageal biopsy tissue and uses immunofluorescence to assess a panel of nine biomarkers, as well as spatial biology features, to yield a score that indicates progression to cancer before a patient shows other clinical signs.
Following the approval of the test, which had already been conditionally approved, clinicians practicing in New York can now order TissueCypher for patients with Barrett's esophagus who they suspect could be at risk of progressing to esophageal cancer.
According to Castle, esophageal cancer is one of the fastest-growing cancers, by incidence, in the US, as well as one of the deadliest, with a five-year survival rate of just 22 percent.