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Easy-to-use, cost-effective test now available to screen for cancer in dogs

Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences

After leading in the research and development of VolitionRx Limited’s (Volition) Nu.Q™ Vet Cancer Screening Test, the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) will now be offering the newly launched, easy-to-use, cost-effective cancer test through the CVMBS’ Gastrointestinal (GI) Laboratory.

Volition, a Belgium-based multi-national epigenetics company that works to develop blood tests that help diagnose a range of cancers and other diseases in both humans and animals, announced the launch of the Nu.Q™ Vet Cancer Screening Test, its first product, in the United States on Nov. 30.

The test is now available to veterinarians in North America for use during annual wellness checks of older dogs, for cases where there is a suspicion of cancer, or for younger dogs from breeds with a high risk for developing cancer in their lifetimes. 

The launch represents a significant development in veterinary medicine, as, until the release of the Nu.Q™ Vet Cancer Screening Test, there were no accurate, simple, and affordable ELISA cancer screening tests available in veterinary medicine, according to Heather Wilson-Robles, CVMBS professor and Dr. Fred A. and Vola N. Palmer Chair in Comparative Oncology, who also serves as chief medical officer of Volition Veterinary Diagnostics Development LLC.

“Unlike in humans, where routine cancer screening is relatively commonplace, there are few tests for animals. We are changing this today, with the launch of the Nu.Q™ Vet Cancer Screening Test,” Wilson-Robles said. “This simple, low-cost blood test can help streamline the diagnostic process and shorten the path to diagnosis thereby allowing treatment (be that chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery) to be initiated earlier, even before symptoms appear, increasing the chance of the dog’s survival and its quality of life.”

The Nu.Q™ Vet Cancer Screening Test measures and identifies circulating nucleosomes, which are early markers of cancer, from a simple blood sample. At 100% specificity, the test has been shown to detect 74 percent of lymphomas and 89 percent of hemangiosarcomas, two of the most common cancers in dogs that comprise approximately one-third of canine cancers.

The benefit for the veterinarian, the pet owner, and the dog is a streamlined diagnostic process: simpler, quicker, and less-invasive diagnosis with the goal of providing quality of life to the pet and more quality time with its owners, as well as providing valuable additional information to inform the clinical decision-making process.