Serac Healthcare has highlighted preliminary findings that suggest its SPECT/CT technetium-99m (Tc-99m) maraciclatide radiotracer can help detect endometriosis at an early stage of the disease.
Tc-99m maraciclatide is a tracer that binds with high affinity to the cell adhesion protein αvβ3 integrin and can help visualize angiogenesis (new blood vessel formation), a key process involved in the growth of endometriotic lesions, Serac said.
Dr. Tatjana Gibbons, of the University of Oxford, presented an ongoing trial on 15 March at the Society for Reproductive Investigation (SRI) annual meeting in Vancouver, Canada. Preliminary results suggest SPECT/CT Tc-99m maraciclatide shows promise as a noninvasive test for early-stage endometriosis over standard laparoscopic surgery, a key-hole surgical procedure to establish the presence or absence of endometriotic lesions, as well as the location if a lesion is found.
Specifically, the approach correctly identified superficial peritoneal endometriosis in trial participants who went on to have this early-stage endometriosis confirmed by laparoscopy, according to Gibbons.
The study is ongoing and will recruit up to 25 patients in total, Serac added.
