September 18, 2024
EPNextS, Inc.

The EPNextS Group, led by its core company EPNextS, Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Tatsuma Nagaoka; hereinafter “EPNextS”) entered into a “Basic Joint Research Agreement concerning New Cancer Treatment through Genome Analysis” with the National Cancer Center (Location: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President: Hitoshi Nakagama; hereinafter, “NCC”) in January 2020. As the first phase of this agreement, the first collaborative study under CIRCULATE-Japan*¹, the “Clinical trial for radically resectable colorectal cancer patients (GALAXY Study)”, has been conducted since May of the same year with the National Cancer Center Hospital East (Location: Kashiwa City, Chiba; Director: Toshihiko Doi; hereinafter, “NCCHE”).
The analysis of the results from the 2,240 colorectal cancer patients who participated in the GALAXY Study, using liquid biopsy² to examine the relationship between circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)³ in the blood and cancer recurrence risk and survival time, revealed the following: Patients in whom ctDNA was detected in the blood test after surgery had a higher likelihood of cancer recurrence and a shorter survival period compared to those in whom it was not detected. Furthermore, it was discovered that even among patients where ctDNA was detected, those who underwent adjuvant chemotherapy and subsequently showed ctDNA clearance had a decreased likelihood of recurrence.
These research findings scientifically demonstrated that testing for ctDNA can predict the risk of colorectal cancer recurrence and survival time, thus aiding in the determination of treatment strategies. This research was published in Nature Medicine*⁴ on September 16, 2024 (Japan time), with the EPNextS Group listed as a co-author.
The publication of the results of the collaboratively conducted GALAXY Study in Nature Medicine, a top journal that receives high global acclaim, is a great honor for the EPNextS Group. Moving forward, we will continue to work with academia to create new insights and evidence in cancer treatment.

Publication Details
Magazine Name：Nature Medicine
Title：ctDNA-based molecular residual disease and survival in resectable colorectal caner
Author：Yoshiaki Nakamura†, Jun Watanabe†, Naoya Akazawa, Keiji Hirata, Kozo Kataoka, Mitsuru Yokota, Kentaro Kato, Masahito Kotaka, Yoshinori Kagawa, Kun-Huei Yeh, Saori Mishima, Hiroki Yukami, Koji Ando, Masaaki Miyo, Toshihiro Misumi, Kentaro Yamazaki, Hiromichi Ebi, Kenji Okita, Atsushi Hamabe, Hiroki Sokuoka, Satoshi Kobayashi*, George Laliotis, Vasily N. Aushev, Shruti Sharma, Adham Jurdi, Minetta C. Liu, Alexey Aleshin, Matthew Rabinowitz, Hideaki Bando, Hiroya Taniguchi, Ichiro Takemasa, Takeshi Kato, Daisuke Kotani, Masaki Mori, Takayuki Yoshino, Eiji Oki*

(† Contribution equal to first author, * Corresponding author, ** Affiliation: Clinical Research Center Real World Evidence Business Headquarters, EPS Corporation)

DOI：10.1038/s41591-024-03254-6
Posted on：September 16, 2024, 10:00 (London Time)
URL:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03254-6

●Related Press Release

National Cancer Center Japan Press Release dated September 17, 2024: “CIRCULATE-Japan GALAXY Confirms Effectiveness of Liquid Biopsy in Predicting Recurrence Risk and Post-operative Treatment Efficacy in Colorectal Cancer -Published in Nature Medicine-”
https://www.ncc.go.jp/en/information/press_release/2024/0917_1/index.html

●Reference Press Release

June 18, 2020: “Notice Regarding the Start of a New Collaborative Study Between the EPS Group and the National Cancer Center Japan: Towards the Development of New Cancer Therapies Through Genome Analysis”
https://www.eps-holdings.co.jp/news/news_file/file/20200618.pdf （Japanese）

March 3, 2022: “EPS Holdings, Inc. and National Cancer Center Hospital East Signed Memorandum of Comprehensive Partnership”
https://www.eps-holdings.co.jp/news/news_file/file/20220303_en.pdf

■EPNextS, Inc.
EPNextS, Inc. is a healthcare solution provider overseeing the core businesses (CRO5, SMO6, CSO*7) within the EPS Group. The Group includes EPS Corporation, a pioneer in the CRO field since its founding in 1991; EP-Link Co., Ltd., which holds the largest share in the SMO field; EP-PharmaLine Co., Ltd., offering a wide range of multi-service solutions in the CSO field; as well as a CRO specializing in food products. By bringing together the human resources and expertise of each company, the entire EPNextS Group will provide new business solutions in the healthcare field through the comprehensive strengths of our 7,000 employees.

■National Cancer Center Hospital East
At National Cancer Center Hospital East, we provide world-class cancer medicine to all our patients by offering the very best and most effective care plans, designed by multidisciplinary teams consisting of professional specialists, delivered by attentive staff. Our hospital has the latest medical equipment, such as robotic surgery and proton beam facilities, minimally invasive surgery and endoscopic treatments, relieving the physical burden on patients, drug therapy, and an abundance of clinical trials.

Glossary

*1 CIRCULATE-Japan: A project aiming at accurately estimating the post-operative recurrence risk for patients undergoing surgical treatment for colorectal cancer using the latest liquid biopsy analysis technology, to provide more appropriate medical care. About 152 facilities (including one overseas) participate. It consists of large-scale investigator-initiated international clinical trials (GALAXY, VEGA, ALTAIR), with the GALAXY trial serving as the core study.

*2 Liquid biopsy: A test that detects cancer genomic abnormalities using a patient’s blood. As it can be repeatedly measured through blood tests, it is less burdensome on the body and is expected to detect cancer recurrence at an earlier stage.

*3 Circulating tumor DNA: Cancer-derived DNA present in very small amounts in the blood.

*4 Nature Medicine: Nature Medicine is a highly regarded academic journal that is part of the “Nature” series of top journals in the natural sciences. It focuses on cutting-edge research in medicine and related fields. First published in 1995, it features high-quality research papers on a wide range of topics, including clinical research, biomedicine, therapeutic development, and medical technology. Its key characteristic is that it is peer-reviewed and holds a very high reputation within the medical community.

*5　CRO：Contract Research Organization

*6　SMO：Site Management Organization

*7　CSO：Contract Sales Organization

[For inquiries regarding this news release]
EPNextS, Inc., Public Relations Department
Email:epn-cco@eps.co.jp