The Mercy Halo™ Test
Cancer cases continue to rise1
%
Rise in Male Cancers
%
Rise in Female Cancers
%
Rise in New Cancers
Cancer survival is 5-10x higher
when cancer found at an early-stage (Stage I or II)2
The Mercy Halo™ Test is different
Mercy Halo™ is a pioneering test being developed for early cancer detection based on analysis of single extracellular vesicles, which exist at high abundance in circulation even in early-stage cancer. The abundance of EVs side-steps the biological limitations of traditional ctDNA liquid biopsy approaches, which fail to reliably detect early-stage cancer.3,4
EVs ARE ABUNDANT
Modeling suggests that one mL of blood from a Stage I cancer patient with a one-centimeter tumor contains 100,000 tumor-derived EVs. The same blood sample is expected to contain ≤ one copy of ctDNA.3
One active tumor cell secretes ~1,000 EVs per day, every day. That same cell does not release any DNA until it dies, when it releases its two genomic copies of DNA.5,6
EVs ARE TUMOR SPECIFIC
Surface proteins on EVs carry information about their tumor cell of origin.5 Through the simultaneous measurement of multiple proteins co-localized on the surface of single EVs, the Mercy Halo™ test is able to achieve remarkable sensitivity and specificity. EVs can theoretically enable the detection of tumors at the very early stages when they are most treatable.
EVs ARE STABLE
EVs are more stable than ctDNA, expanding the utility of the Mercy Halo™ test to assess cancer signal in biobanked samples.6
The Mercy Halo™ Test is different
Mercy Halo™ is a pioneering test being developed for early cancer detection based on analysis of single extracellular vesicles, which exist at high abundance in circulation even in early-stage cancer. The abundance of EVs side-steps the biological limitations of traditional ctDNA liquid biopsy approaches, which fail to reliably detect early-stage cancer.3,4
EVs ARE ABUNDANT
Modeling suggests that one mL of blood from a Stage I cancer patient with a one-centimeter tumor contains 100,000 tumor-derived EVs. The same blood sample is expected to contain ≤ one copy of ctDNA.3
One active tumor cell secretes ~1,000 EVs per day, every day. That same cell does not release any DNA until it dies, when it releases its two genomic copies of DNA.5,6
EVs ARE TUMOR SPECIFIC
Surface proteins on EVs carry information about their tumor cell of origin.5 Through the simultaneous measurement of multiple proteins co-localized on the surface of single EVs, the Mercy Halo™ test is able to achieve remarkable sensitivity and specificity. EVs can theoretically enable the detection of tumors at the very early stages when they are most treatable.
EVs ARE STABLE
EVs are more stable than ctDNA, expanding the utility of the Mercy Halo™ test to assess cancer signal in biobanked samples.6
Extracellular Vesicles in Early Cancer Detection
Peer-reviewed literature demonstrates the potential of EVs in early cancer detection.
Our Mission: Saving Lives Through the Early Detection of Cancer
Some cancers are more dangerous than others. It is our mission to develop a portfolio of early detection tests for a variety of cancers in order to save more lives.
Ovarian
Ovarian cancer often causes no symptoms in its early stages, and so is detected in its late stages 80% of the time, when it has already spread. Each year in the USA, almost 14,000 women will die of ovarian cancer and almost 22,000 new cases will be diagnosed.7 There is currently no early detection test for ovarian cancer.
Lung
As the #1 cancer killer among both men and women, more people die from lung cancer each year than from colon and breast cancers combined.8 Lung cancer symptoms usually do not appear until the disease is at a later stage.
References
1. Cancer Research UK (CRUK). “Worldwide Cancer Incidence Statistics.” March 22, 2023