Solving the mystery of p53

For 20 years, scientists worldwide have pursued the promise of p53.

The tumor repressor gene has been the subject of "more than 10,000 scientific papers," notes Dr. David Ralph, senior scientist of the UroSciences Group at UroCor. Since the gene's tumor-diagnostic characteristics were identified around 1978, the Oklahoma City scientist honestly speculates a month didn't pass where you couldn't "pick up a molecular biology journal or a clinical without reading about it."

When UroCor became a public urology services company in 1995, Ralph started work on the problem. In the spring of `96, he gathered a team of scientists to crack p53. Being able to read the gene would deliver a prognosis tool of truly unestimateable proportions. UroCor would be able to tell just how dangerous the cancer is and recommend what types of treatment that patient required. "Everybody has known that if you could deliver a p53 mutation test, it would dramatically change the way cancer was treated," says Ralph. "But no one had figured out how to do this." Dr. Robert W. Veltri, vice president and general manager of the UroSciences Group, credits Ralph with the UroCor breakthrough. Ralph humbly deflects all credit. "I was given the pleasure to be the front man for this team," he states. "I assembled a team, acted like a cheerleader.... it was the cumulative effort of about a dozen people." The p53 tumor mutation test, which UroCor processes at its own laboratory from urine specimens sent in by physicians, uses technology licensed from Roche Molecular Biochemicals -- Diagnostics of Indianapolis and Ambion of Austin. "We've also developed some know-how in-house," says Ralph. The test has been reviewed from payers like Medicare to the College of American Pathologists and the New York State Department of Health. For all its potential, the p53 test is but one of several new products the Oklahoma City urology company foresees building stronger earnings upon this year. While maintaining is core diagnostics focus, the company anticipates a corporate transition in 1999 -- from co- promoting two therapeutic products for late-stage prostate cancer, to sales and marketing of multiple products in several disease states. In the second quarter, UroCor will roll-out its Persist Treatment System. Over the second half of 1996, pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, it will launch products for prostate radiation implants and the Pacis bladder cancer immunotherapy product. All three lines will be sold under a restructured therapeutics marketing pact with Zeneca Pharmaceuticals. The new agreement waived a "substantial increase in sales calls" UroCor had previously been committed to make. While UroCor's total revenue under the old Zeneca agreement was $6 million -- about an eighth of UroCor's $47.6 million total revenue for 1998 -- President and Chief Operating Officer Michael W. George says the new agreement offers "greater downside protection and more capacity for UroCor to build value in its own products." With 2,600 urologists on its account base at the end of 1998, UroCor now serves almost 35 percent of the nation's office-based urologists. Clients who access two or more UroCor online information products last year increased to 51 percent of its expanded client base, up from about 48 percent at the close of `97. Specimen case volume increased 33.9 percent last year to approximately 378,000 from 283,000 for 1997. Fourth quarter case volume totaled 109,000, up 38.9 percent from 78,000 for the same period of `97. UroCor ended 1998 with a net loss of $2.47 million due to special third quarter charges and operating losses of the urology support services unit. Without those, the company would have enjoyed a $3.5 million profit.

Copyright 1999
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