Liquid Biopsy Test Used in Cancer Trial
Creatv Bio's LifeTracDx blood test will be used as a biomarker in a Phase 2 study for metastatic colorectal cancer. The use of the liquid biopsy technology in a clinical trial highlights the growing role of non-invasive blood tests in accelerating drug development and personalizing cancer treatment.
The LifeTracDx test stands apart by analyzing not only Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) but also Cancer Associated Macrophage-like Cells (CAMLs), a type of circulating cell related to the body's immune response to a tumor. This liquid biopsy platform uses a proprietary microfilter to isolate these cells from a simple blood draw and has already been utilized in 20 clinical trials. The trial's drug, leronlimab, is a monoclonal antibody that targets the CCR5 receptor on immune cells. This receptor is known to play a role in tumor growth and metastasis. Leronlimab was also previously investigated as an entry inhibitor for treating HIV. In oncology, leronlimab is thought to block CCR5 to disrupt the tumor microenvironment, potentially converting pro-tumor macrophages into anti-tumor ones. Data from studies in metastatic triple-negative breast cancer suggests the drug may also increase PD-L1 expression on tumor cells, potentially making previously unresponsive "cold" tumors "hot" and susceptible to immunotherapy. The FDA cleared CytoDyn's Phase 2 trial in late 2024 for patients with a difficult-to-treat form of the disease: relapsed or refractory microsatellite-stable (MSS) metastatic colorectal cancer. The study, which dosed its first patient in June 2025, combines leronlimab with the chemotherapy drugs Lonsurf and Avastin. Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. The incidence among people under 50 has been increasing for at least two decades.
