New App Available in the Fight Against Colon Cancer

No one wants to hear the words, “you have colon cancer.” For patients diagnosed with an advanced form of the disease, these words can be particularly devastating. The five-year survival rate can be a little as 6 percent. The top-of-mind question becomes, “Which treatment or clinical trial will work for me?”

That’s why the College of American Pathologists (CAP) has partnered with CollabRx to provide patients with late stage colon cancer access to cutting-edge information that could change their lives. Patients can now access the recently released Therapy Finder - Colorectal Cancer application (app) through the College’s website and patient portal, MyBiopsy.org, to find personalized information on cancer therapies. Visitors to the sites also can access the CollabRx Therapy Finder apps for lung and skin cancer.

“With advances in genomics, we now have a greater understanding of the genetic profile of a patient’s tumor and know that cancer is no longer a one size fits all disease,” said Stanley J. Robboy, M.D., FCAP, president of the CAP and pathology professor and vice chair for Faculty Affairs at Duke University in Durham, N.C. “Our partnership with CollabRx will put this valuable information into the hands of patients and hopefully lead to better patient outcomes.”

Co-founded by Marty Tenenbaum, a survivor of metastatic melanoma, CollabRx marries information technology with the scientific expertise of the nation’s top oncologists and pathologists, the physicians who diagnose cancer. Its initial products are Therapy Finder apps which are dynamically updated online resources that enable physicians and patients to identify diagnostic tests and clinical trials associated with therapies that “target” the unique genetic profiles of patients' tumors.

“We developed the apps so patients can seek optimal treatments, not based on their zip codes, but on the molecular zip codes of their tumors,” said James M. Karis, chief executive officer of CollabRx. “We’re honored to have the opportunity to tap into the scientific expertise and knowledge base offered by the CAP pathologist members and hope to partner with the College again as we develop new apps.”

CollabRx apps allow users to input information about their disease- including the stage, treatment history, status of genetic mutations known to have implications for treatment, and sites of metastasis, if any. It then provides personalized therapy-related options, based on peer-reviewed medical and scientific content that may be of use to the patient and physician, such as identification of potential drugs, diagnostics, and clinical trials that may be useful in the specific form of colorectal cancer selected.

"Cancer patients frequently have limited knowledge of the growing number of medical tests and therapies available and relevant to them," said Charles Roussel, chief executive officer for the CAP, whose life also has been touched by cancer. "Our collaboration with CollabRx helps us deliver on our mission to serve patients and fosters greater communication between patients and physicians which is vital to successful treatment."