PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE
March, 23, 2015, Lund, Sweden
Immunovia receives the approval of a € 4.2 million grant, from the EU research
and innovation framework programme Horizon 2020 for the clinical validation of
the first blood based test for early detection of pancreatic cancer
(Lund, Sweden, March, 23, 2015) Immunovia AB announced today that the company received the approval for
a two-year € 4.2 million funding from Horizon 2020 which is an EU financial grant initiative to secure Europe’s
global competitiveness.
The EU grant application was approved to support the clinical validation of Immunovia’s biomarker signature,
IMMray™ PanCan-d, the first blood-based test for early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. As described in the
Horizon 2020 evaluation report, the overall goal of this project is to provide clinical evidence that pancreatic
cancer can be diagnosed in asymptomatic phases (stage I and II, respectively) when the patient can undergo
surgery.
The initial retrospective clinical studies with almost 1 000 patients/controls have already confirmed that the
new biomarker signature, IMMray™ PanCan-d, can accurately separate pancreatic cancer patients from healthy
individuals with a blood test.
Mats Grahn, CEO, Immunovia, said, “On behalf of our team, we are extremely happy and grateful to receive
this significant EU Horizon 2020 grant. This EU funding allows us to immediately continue and expand the
clinical validation and the commercialization of IMMray™ PanCan-d for early detection of pancreatic cancer.
Our mission is to establish IMMray™ PanCan-d as a standard amongst pancreatologists and diabetes physicians
worldwide for detecting pancreatic cancer in high-risk groups much earlier than is possible today. We are
looking forward to the uptake of the test in clinical practice as it will significantly improve the survival rates and
the quality of life for pancreatic cancer patients and their families.”
For more information please contact: Mats Grahn
Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Immunovia
[email protected]
For media relations please contact:
Laura Chirica, PhD
Chief Commercial Officer, CCO, Immunovia
[email protected]
Read more about Immunovia and IMMray™ PanCan-d: www.immunovia.com
About Immunovia
Immunovia AB was founded in 2007 by investigators from the Department of Immunotechnology at Lund University and
CREATE Health, the Center for Translational Cancer Research in Lund, Sweden. Immunovia’s strategy is to decipher the
wealth of information in blood and translate it into clinically useful tools to diagnose complex diseases such as cancer,
earlier and more accurately than previously possible. Immunovia´s core technology platform, IMMray™, is based on
antibody biomarker microarray analysis. The company is now performing clinical evidence validation studies for the
commercialization of IMMray™ PanCan-d the first blood based test for early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. (Source:
www.immunovia.com)
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About Horizon 2020
Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7
years (2014 to 2020) – in addition to the private investment that this money will attract. It promises more breakthroughs,
discoveries and world-firsts by taking great ideas from the lab to the market. Horizon 2020 is the financial instrument
implementing the Innovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative aimed at securing Europe's global competitiveness
Horizon 2020 is open to everyone and actively supports SMEs (small and medium enterprises) by providing both direct
financial support, and indirect support to increase their innovation capacity. 'Innovation in SMEs' aims at creating a bridge
between the core of the framework programme - support to research, development and innovation projects - and the
creation of a favourable ecosystem for SME innovation and growth. (Source: http://ec.europa.eu, Horizon 2020 Research
and Innovation Framework Programme)
About pancreatic cancer
Today, pancreatic cancer also known as pancreatic adenocarcinoma is the 4th most deadly cancer on the same level as
breast cancer. Its 5-year survival rate is less than 4%. If diagnosed 6-12 month earlier than today, the 5 year survival rate
could increase significantly to over 50%. The cancer is characterized by general and non-specific symptoms until it reaches
an advanced stage, by which time current therapy is not effective. In addition, current methods for diagnosis are complex
and not designed for differential diagnosis at an early stage. Pancreatic cancer has four stages that describe the
development of the disease. Early stages are considered stage I and stage II due to the fact that the tumor can be operated;
the disease has not spread into the body and the patient can undergo surgery. Today, patients are diagnosed in the late
stages (stage III and stage IV). In stage III, the disease has spread to the major blood vessels near the pancreas and may
have spread to nearby lymph nodes. In stage IV, tumors may be any size and the disease has spread to both nearby and
distant organs, such as the lung, liver and peritoneal cavity. For individuals at increased risk due to family history or other
factors, effective early screening methods are especially important. A blood test that identifies specific substances in the
blood that is highly indicative of cancer is the ideal solution as an early detection method because of its ease of use and
cost-effectiveness. (Source: www.pancan.org, www.cancerresearchuk.org, https://pancreaticcanceraction.org/pancreaticcancer/)
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