That’s where DXRX comes in. More than just a platform, DXRX offers a gateway to growth by providing lab technicians with access to high-quality educational resources, peer collaboration, and real-world insights that help them stay ahead in a rapidly evolving field.

Enhance your professional skills and earn CPD credits from our LabTalks, tailored to boost technical expertise and career progression.

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Whether it's mastering biomarker testing or understanding the latest innovations in precision medicine, DXRX empowers technicians to build confidence, expand their expertise, and take their careers to the next level.

Take a moment to search through DXRX and our resources on blood cancer.

LabTalks

In the dynamic world of haemato-oncology, lab technicians are the steady hands behind every test result. From preparing blood samples to running complex diagnostic assays, they play a crucial role in supporting accurate diagnoses and guiding treatment decisions for patients with blood cancers. Yet, despite their importance, technicians often face limited access to structured learning pathways and career development opportunities.

Lab directors' leadership is critical in the field of blood cancers. They oversee complex workflows, ensure regulatory compliance, and foster collaboration across departments. But with increasing demands and rapid technological change, lab directors need more than expertise; they need support.

DXRX: A Platform for Innovation and Collaboration

DXRX is designed to meet the evolving needs of lab leaders. It’s a collaborative platform that connects labs with biopharma, technology providers, and peers to accelerate diagnostic development and implementation.

Stay ahead of the curve with biomarker dashboards to inform and benchmark your lab’s performance against industry standards. 

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Gain strategic insights from LabTalk sessions covering the latest in emerging biomarkers, evolving testing algorithms, clinical guideline updates, and regulatory frameworks like IVDR and LDTs. 

Chronic Myeloid Leukemia  the essential role of molecular testing as a guide to diagnosis and treatment

Build your network and share expertise through our collaborative community, while keeping your team informed with curated education and the latest industry developments. 

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Lab directors are the driving force behind accurate, timely, and innovative blood cancer diagnostics. With platforms like DXRX, they’re not just keeping pace—they’re leading the way. This month, we celebrate their leadership, their impact, and their unwavering commitment to better patient care.

Explore the campaign and discover how DXRX is powering the future of diagnostics.

Blood Cancer Awareness Month is a time to honour the people who make life-saving diagnostics possible. At the heart of this effort are lab directors, visionary leaders who guide teams, implement cutting-edge technologies, and ensure the highest standards of testing.

Yet, with increasing diagnostic complexity and mounting pressure on lab resources, pathologists face significant challenges in delivering consistent, high-quality care. These challenges are where DXRX can be utilised, offering a collaborative platform designed to support pathologists with real-time clinical decision tools, streamlined workflows, and access to a global network of expertise.

Benefits of a DXRX membership for a Pathologist:

Access a rich library of white papers to support diagnostic accuracy and innovation in your practice. 

IVDR Updates

Collaborate through peer-reviewed ring studies to benchmark your performance against peers and identify areas of improvement 

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Stay engaged with the latest research and expert perspectives through our podcast series, designed to bring cutting-edge science and case discussions directly to you. 

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As the demands on haemato-oncology labs continue to grow, pathologist’s expertise in interpreting diagnostic data, guiding treatment decisions, and collaborating across clinical teams is central to delivering precision medicine in blood cancer care. DXRX offers not only a collaborative space that supports clinical decision making, but also bridges the gaps between data, diagnostics, and decision-making, empowering pathologists to deliver faster and more accurate care.

Join us this Blood Cancer Awareness month in celebrating the ‘Team behind the testing’. Shining a light on the laboratory professionals who are the foundation of diagnosis and treatment, working in the background to drive the success of precision medicine in blood cancer.

In the fast-evolving landscape of haemato-oncology, pathologists are a central part within the laboratory team who work tirelessly to ensure accurate diagnosis, guide targeted therapies and collaborate with other stakeholders to guarantee optimal, co-ordinated care. Their role is more critical than ever, as precision medicine demands deeper insights and faster turnaround times.

The reasoning for this situation is complex and multifactorial some of the causes are related to the following:

Lack of awareness of the new biomarker/test

Lack of proper training/optimization in running the test in the lab

Laboratories considering the adoption of a new biomarker test must assess its clinical utility, cost-effectiveness, and impact on patient care in comparison to existing diagnostic methods.

Additionally, they may need to provide training for laboratory staff and ensure seamless integration of the test into current laboratory information systems.

Developing a validated companion diagnostic (CDx) test aimed at identifying suitable patients for precision medicine (PM) treatment does not automatically guarantee precise detection of the appropriate patient population and subsequent delivery of treatment. In the current landscape of clinical diagnostic testing, many patients do not receive necessary tests in a timely manner, despite their availability.

Even after obtaining regulatory approval and completing technical optimization, the commercial availability of a biomarker test does not guarantee immediate uptake in laboratories. Factors such as reimbursement policies, clinician awareness and acceptance, and the availability of supporting infrastructure and resources can influence the pace of adoption.

This delay in accessing tests, and consequently treatments, is attributed to the inadequacies of the current clinical diagnostic testing landscape. This unprepared environment poses numerous challenges to the clinical implementation of CDx tests, hindering their diffusion and utilization.

To delve deeper into how data-driven engagement can address these challenges and facilitate the adoption of new biomarker tests, we invite you to join our upcoming webinar on November 13th from 1-2 PM EST: 

Optimize Your Physician Engagement Strategy: Data-Driven HCP Education in Precision Medicine

This session will focus on effective strategies for leveraging data and omnichannel approaches to enhance physician engagement and lab education. By rapidly identifying and educating healthcare professionals about your precision medicine therapies, we can ensure timely awareness and understanding, ultimately driving adoption rates and improving patient access to essential testing and treatment


Register here 

The uptake of a new biomarker test takes too long.

This delay in accessing tests, and consequently treatments, can be attributed to the unpreparedness of the clinical diagnostic testing landscape into which these tests are introduced. Such a setting presents numerous challenges to the widespread implementation of CDx tests, hindering their diffusion and adoption.

Awareness among physicians regarding biomarker tests is crucial, as they initiate the testing process by ordering these tests. The slow uptake of tests that follows is often due to a lack of awareness regarding the clinical utility of new biomarkers and associated therapies.

The availability of testing is paramount for adoption, but equally important is the availability of tests in laboratories that physicians trust and prefer. Hence, raising awareness among laboratories is crucial for facilitating the offering of tests.

By investing in pre-launch planning and CDx tests, the clinical diagnostic testing landscape can be positively impacted. Strategic preparation ensures that early adopters are informed about 'how and where to request testing' and understand how to interpret the results. This, in turn, benefits biopharmaceutical companies by increasing the return on investment (ROI) through improved access to testing and treatment for more patients.

To explore more about how data-driven physician engagement can enhance the adoption of precision medicine, join our latest webinar, 

‘Cutting Through the Noise: Data-Driven Physician Engagement in Precision Medicine’ on November 13th, 1-2 pm EST.

Join Gosia Leitch, VP of Engagement Solutions at Diaceutics to explore how data driven omnichannel strategies can enhance engagement by precisely targeting physicians treating patients with relevant biomarkers. Discover how leveraging laboratory data can accelerate the adoption of novel treatments, enabling rapid engagement with physicians within 24 hours after a patient tests positive for a relevant biomarker.

Register for the webinar

In the field of oncology alone, inefficiencies stemming from inadequate market development planning for companion diagnostic (CDx) tests currently result in 50% of patients not receiving appropriate testing for biomarker-guided treatment.

ALK was first discovered in 1994, originally identified as a fusion gene in ALCL where it was found to drive oncogenesis via constitutive kinase activity through a chromosomal rearrangement known as ALK fusion. This breakthrough highlighted how specific genetic alterations could underpin certain cancers, laying the groundwork for targeted therapies and opening the doors to understanding the role of ALK in other malignancies, including inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors and NSCLC. The identification of ALK rearrangements in 2007, where the ALK gene fuses with other genes such as EML4 in lung cancer, was a pivotal moment in the understanding of oncogenic drivers leading to the development of ALK inhibitors - a transformational treatment for patients with ALK-positive cancers.



ALK-positive lung cancer: A game-changer in NSCLC treatment

The most notable impact of ALK's discovery has been in NSCLC, where ALK rearrangements are present in approximately 3-7% of patients. These patients tend to be younger, with little or no smoking history.

In 2011, the U.S. FDA approved crizotinib, the first ALK inhibitor, as a targeted therapy for ALK-positive NSCLC. Crizotinib dramatically improved progression-free survival (PFS) in patients by specifically targeting the ALK fusion protein and halting the growth of cancer cells. Since then, more advanced ALK inhibitors, such as alectinib, brigatinib, and lorlatinib, have been developed to overcome resistance and improve patient outcomes. These therapies have shown remarkable efficacy in extending PFS and overall survival (OS) in patients with ALK-positive NSCLC.



The evolution of ALK-positive NSCLC therapies

Patients with ALK-positive NSCLC who initially benefited from crizotinib often experienced disease progression due to acquired resistance. This challenge spurred the development of second- and third-generation ALK inhibitors.

, approved by the FDA in 2017, demonstrated superior efficacy in preventing brain metastases and improved overall survival compared to crizotinib. A study, presented at the European Society of Medical Oncology Congress in 2023, highlighted the efficacy of alectinib in early-stage NSCLC. Patients treated with alectinib showed a 76% reduction in the risk of disease recurrence or death compared to those receiving platinum-based chemotherapy, the non-personalized therapeutic alternative.

, a third-generation ALK inhibitor, has been crucial for patients whose disease progressed on earlier therapies. Its ability to cross the blood-brain barrier has made it particularly effective in treating brain metastases, a key cause of mortality in ALK-positive NSCLC patients.


ALK beyond lung cancer: Expanding its role in precision medicine 

Whilst ALK is most closely associated with NSCLC, its role as a biomarker has expanded across multiple cancer types. ALK rearrangements are now recognized in several cancers, allowing for the application of ALK inhibitors in additional indications.

 ALK was first discovered in ALCL, and targeting ALK rearrangements in this rare lymphoma has been transformative. Brentuximab vedotin, in combination with ALK inhibitors like crizotinib, has shown significant improvement in outcomes for ALK-positive ALCL patients.

 ALK mutations also play a role in neuroblastoma, a pediatric cancer. ceritinib, another ALK inhibitor, has shown promise in treating ALK-positive neuroblastoma, offering new hope to young patients with this aggressive disease.

Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumors (IMT):

 ALK rearrangements are also seen in these rare soft tissue sarcomas, allowing for targeted therapy with ALK inhibitors. These tumors, previously difficult to treat, have shown improved outcomes with the introduction of precision medicine approaches.

The Broader Impact of ALK in Precision Medicine

The success of ALK-targeted therapies has underscored the importance of biomarker-driven treatment approaches in precision medicine. ALK's journey from discovery to a frontline cancer therapy demonstrates how understanding the genetic makeup of a patients tumor can lead to tailored treatments that improve outcomes and quality of life. 

With each new generation of ALK inhibitors, patients are living longer, healthier lives. The ability to identify patients with ALK rearrangements early, through comprehensive diagnostic testing, has become critical in ensuring the timely delivery of these therapies. Diaceutics has long championed the role of diagnostic testing in precision medicine, ensuring that the right tests are available to identify patients, enabling timely access to these innovative therapies.


As we celebrate 30 years of ALK’s discovery, the future of ALK targeting therapy continues to look promising. Ongoing research into the mechanisms of resistance, along with the development of more potent and brain-penetrant ALK inhibitors, ensures that this biomarker will continue to improve patient outcomes in the coming decades.

Furthermore, ALK serves as a model for the broader field of biomarker-driven oncology. Its success highlights the critical role that precision medicine plays in transforming how we treat cancer—shifting from a one-size-fits-all approach to one that is tailored to the individual patient’s genetic profile.

As a leader in precision medicine, Diaceutics remains at the forefront of enabling access to these targeted therapies. Our extensive real-world datasets and deep understanding of diagnostic pathways enables our pharma partners to continuously identify the right patients, enabling them to receive the right treatment at the right time to positively benefit their disease outcome.



Here’s to 30 years of innovation, and to the next 30 years of breakthroughs in ALK-targeted therapy and precision medicine.

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2024 marks the 30th anniversary of the discovery of Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) as a biomarker, a milestone that has significantly shaped the landscape of precision medicine. Initially identified in 1994 in anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), ALK has evolved from an intriguing oncogene into a critical therapeutic target, revolutionizing the way we approach various cancers, particularly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Over the past three decades, ALK-targeted therapies have demonstrated remarkable success, offering a lifeline to patients who might otherwise have limited treatment options. As we reflect on three decades of advancements, we explore the journey of ALK from its discovery to its current applications in targeted therapies, highlighting real-world case studies that underscore its impact.

Insights

Building Expertise in the Lab: DXRX and the Evolving Role of Technicians in Haemato-Oncology

Leadership in Blood Cancer Diagnostics: How DXRX empowers Lab Directors to innovate and lead.

Elevating Pathology in Blood Cancer Care: The DXRX Advantage in Collaborative Diagnostics

Overcome the challenges of Implementing New Biomarker Tests in Labs

Early awareness campaigns obtain better results

Celebrating 30 years of ALK: From discovery to precision medicine breakthroughs