Fujirebio Diagnostics Launches First Blood Test for Mesothelioma

Fujirebio Diagnostics (FDI) has signed a distributor agreement with Australian-based Vital Diagnostics for its new blood test for mesothelioma, MESOMARK, marking the beginning of the company's commercial roll-out of MESOMARK, which is now available for the first time in Australia.

MESOMARK is a manual enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for managing mesothelioma. It works by identifying a group of molecular markers called soluble mesothelin-related proteins (SMRP), which are released into the bloodstream by mesothelioma cells. Because SMRPs can be elevated for several years before an actual diagnosis of mesothelioma can be made, MESOMARK will help in the routine monitoring of asbestos exposed individuals who are at greatest risk for developing mesothelioma.

"MESOMARK is the first in-vitro diagnostic test for patients with mesothelioma and has the potential to improve survival rates and quality of life for patients with this aggressive and often fatal disease," said Jeffrey Allard, FDI's vice president and chief scientific officer.